Emotions
by Vulcanlover12
Summary: [Follows Star Trek 2009] Space is the final frontier. Everyone knows that. Space, for some, is a means for business; for others, it's politics. For Sky Ashley Lorion, however, it means new discoveries and exploration and a family aboard a starship. Daughter of the deceased Captain Kevin Lorion and Commander Lanna-Lee Lorion, she is thrust into a cataclysm that will test her deeply.
1. Prologue

**-Prologue-**

_U.S.S. Explorer, Stardate: 2242.65_

_'__It's a routine mission,'_ he had been told by the Starfleet Council. _'__You're to take a load of dilithium to Alpha Quadrant, Rencetti IV for experimenting.'_

Captain Kevin Lorion huffed at the memory.

A two-ton load of dilithium was worth more than a whole, brand-new starship and the Starfleet Council was going to let a bunch of space-crazed scientists _experiment_ on it? Sure, there was the possibility that the scientists would discover something revolutionary - hell, maybe even create something _better_ than dilithium - but the young starship captain thought the chances were very slim.

The main viewing screen displayed the grand splendor and colorful phenomena of space surrounding the science vessel, making any space-lubber want to capture every aspect of its ideal beauty into permanent memory. The _U.S.S. Explorer_ was headed towards the Rencetti star system. The planet was mostly made up of water, making it an ideal place for an engineering outpost since not very many colonists could live there. His helmsman, Lieutenant Fiona Latherwill, was talking with the Navigation's Officer Christopher Lewis about the relatives she had on the outpost, all of them engineers.

Kevin drummed his fingers on the arm of his chair: the chair he'd worked to receive for nine long years. Lanna-Lee was in their quarters resting; they'd dropped by Earth on their way to Rencetti IV and left their two children Ryan and Sky Lorion with Kevin's parents in Chicago. His beloved wife had cried the whole thirty-minute ride back to Spacestation I that orbited Earth. He'd insisted it was necessary because the outpost planet was directly on the border with the Klingons and he didn't want them to get hurt (or - quite possibly - killed). She'd sullenly agreed with him that it was for the best.

_'__My little Sky,'_ he thought warmly. She was his pride and joy. She would've given _anything_ to be with her captain-of-a-dad, whether it be taking her to his office at Starfleet HQ in San Francisco where they lived, going out for ice cream, or just playing 'Starship' in her room. He'd chuckled when she told him what she wanted to be when she grew up.

_'__I wanna be Science Officer, Daddy!'_ she would exclaim while sitting in her room at night. The small five-year-old was lovable by any standards. His friend was a Vulcan Ambassador and he'd even said that his daughter was _'__appealing by human terms'_. His friend wasn't very mushy about anything, give-or-take; even about his own son, in which he'd told Kevin little about since he was born.

Finally reaching the final stretch of her journey, the _Explorer_'s computer system sent an alert to the Navigation's station.

"We're fifteen minutes away from Rencetti IV, Captain," said Lewis, scanning over the notifications on his screen.

Kevin nodded and pressed the button that connected to the communication unit wired into his chair, making the announcement to the crew. He raised his voice slightly so the microphone would catch his voice clearly and carry it throughout the whole ship. "Crewmen, this is your captain speaking; we are fifteen minutes away from Rencetti IV. Hangar Deck, prepare the dilithium load for shuttle transportation."

Once he finished the message he switched it to the private comm unit connected to his and Lanna-Lee's cabin.

"Lee? How are you?" he asked tenderly. His Ambassador friend had once told him that _his 'affections for his wife were unappealingly forthcoming'_, to which he'd replied with _'__it's a human thing'_.

"_I'm fine, Kevin,_" she replied. Her voice was slightly tired as she continued, "_It seems too quiet in here without the kids running around causing trouble._"

Kevin chuckled and was about to reply when the ship jolted sharply to the right, sending some unsuspecting crewmen out of their seats.

"What the hell was that, Lieutenant?" he demanded Latherwill who was frantically trying to reroute the frazzled systems.

"Sir, it's a Klingon Bird of Prey! They're demanding that we hand over the dilithium load!" Liam Swanson, Chief Communications Officer, exclaimed before Latherwill could answer.

All of Kevin's muscles tightened at the new information. A large grimace caused frown lines to crease over his normally smiling face, aging him by almost a decade. Adrenaline pumped through his veins and he clutched the arms of his chair, staring at the now-available visual of the grayish-green ship hovering before them, raptor-like wings looming and gaping mouth glowing an angered orange. Thoughts were racing through his head and he forced himself to relax; it was the key of situations like this.

He took a deep breath before turning his attention to the Tactical station where Lieutenant Lorelei Quintana was awaiting instructions. "Lieutenant, lock phaser one on the vessel and fire at my command," he ordered.

He didn't glance back at Communications while he said, "Commander, open a hailing frequency; try to convince them we're not a threat."

"Yes, sir," Swanson replied.

After a moment Swanson turned his face to his captain. With dread in his voice, he said quietly, "They're denying, sir. They ordered that we give up the dilithium or die."

The muscle in Kevin's jaw drew taught but he stayed silent. The bridge crew all turned to look at him, silently querying what he'd do. After what seemed like an eternity he quietly, yet firmly, gave the order.

"Fire."

* * *

_Earth, Stardate: 2242.67_

It was early morning in the quiet city of Chicago, and Sky Lorion was sitting in her grandparent's living room. Their apartment was fairly large, but nothing compared to what her parent's condo in San Francisco.

The holoscreen was on, but Sky had it muted and she wasn't paying attention; it was a boring show anyway. Her attention was drawn to the PADD in her hands. Her father had left it with her so he could keep easy contact with her and Ryan. She was reading an article on the recent happenings at Starfleet Headquarters. A five year-old she may be, she had already proven that she was a master reader.

Her brother was in his room playing video games, as per usual, and she was thankful he didn't have the volume turned up too loud, otherwise it would have disturbed her reading. Her grandparents were still asleep in their bedroom; both children had gotten up before them, as was the standard routine.

The comm unit that was sitting on the counter began to abruptly ring and Sky pushed her short legs off the large couch, setting her bare feet on the plush carpet.

She padded into the kitchen, pushing a chair against the counter and using it as a stepping-stool. She clambered up and keyed in the answer command. "Hello?"

A kind male face appeared on the screen, and Sky recognized his Starfleet Admiral's uniform. "Good morning, little lady," he greeted with a gentle smile. "I'm Admiral Lenderman, Starfleet Command. Do you know where your grandparents are?"

Sky giggled at the 'little lady'. "Yes, sir, I can get Mamaw for you."

"That would be fine, thank you," the man acknowledged her. Sky could tell his polite tone was forced, like he was hiding something bad.

"All right, I'll go get her." Sky hopped down from the chair, walked through the living room, and down the hall to her grandparent's room. She reached up and turned the brass knob to the left and pushed the door in, the wooden door giving way with a soft creak. Sky continued on inside.

"Mamaw, there's a nice man on the phone wantin' to talk to you," she said after coming to her grandmother's side of the bed.

Ashley Logan was a very analytical woman, even in her elder years. Her husband, Carl Logan, not so much. She opened her eyes and peered down at her granddaughter. "A nice man from who?" inquired the older woman.

"He said he's from Starfleet," Sky answered.

"Who's from Starfleet?" Carl sleepily asked, his inner southern giving a twang to the words.

Sky stepped back as Ashley flipped back the sheets and walked briskly out of the room back to the kitchen. The five year-old went to follow her, but Carl stood up behind her and rested a hand on her shoulder.

"Why don't you go play with your brother?" he suggested gently.

She looked up at him, ice-blue eyes wide and confused. "Yes, sir." Sky walked down the hall but paused beside Ryan's door and watched Carl enter the kitchen as well. She could hear voices, but they were muffled and incomprehensible.

Sky didn't understand what was going on, but even with a child mentality she knew something was very wrong.

* * *

Sky was in her Ryan's room about fifteen minutes later when Carl poked his head in the door. "Kids, ya'll need to come on into the livin' room."

He left two confused children behind and they exchanged befuddled looks before both shrugging, signifying neither of them knew what was to come.

Sky followed her brother into the living room. He stood almost four inches taller than her, but Sky liked him being taller than her because whenever she was with him she felt safe.

Their grandparents were standing before the couch, talking amongst themselves when the children entered the room. Looking up, they gestured for the children to sit. Ryan lifted Sky up onto the couch and set her down before climbing up beside her.

"What is it, Grandpa?" inquired Ryan, tilting his head slightly, hazel eyes glinting with curiosity. Ashley sat down beside Sky and Carl went to Ryan's side.

"Honey…Mommy and Daddy…aren't coming home," murmured Ashley.

Sky's eyes widened exponentially at the unexpected statement. "B-but they promised they'd be back in a little while! D-daddy wouldn't b-break his p-promise!" she exclaimed disbelievingly. She felt grief grip her tiny heart with an invisible hand and twist it, causing her eyes to grow hot with unshed tears.

"I'm sorry, Wiz. They're not comin' home," Carl replied shaking his head sadly.

Sky's lip quivered and Ashley wrapped her arms around the child, pulling her closer to her. The little girl began to sob and Ashley rubbed her back consolingly.

_'__Why did Daddy lie to me?'_


	2. Moving Along to Starfleet Academy

**-Chapter 1-**

_Earth, Stardate: 2255.235_

The headlight of the hover-bike leaped ahead twenty feet as she sped along the dirt road. The night was dark and cold, with the smell and promise of snow on the way. Cold wind blasted against her face, sending her hair flaring out behind her as she twisted the accelerator handle forward, causing the engine to zip by more quickly.

Pine trees flew by her as she continued down the forest road, dirt flying behind her with the retreating red light going by. Her face was impassive, calm and serene, her lips a thin pink line. Her eyes flicked around the different colored leaves that rustled on the branches as a soft breeze tickled them.

Shortly after the news of Sky's parent's death, Ashley and Carl Logan had packed up and moved from San Francisco to the small town of Littleton in Colorado, directly southwest of Denver. With the pension from both Starfleet Officers' deaths, they were able to buy eight-hundred acres of land, building a house in the general center. When Ryan turned eighteen, he set out to build his own home nearer the edge of the property where the forests were thicker and less touched. He had worked so hard to make enough money for that little cabin, and now he was twenty and had a wife with a baby on the way.

Coming around a corner, Sky slowed down gingerly as the road inclined upward onto a thickly-wooded plateau. When she reached the top, she pulled over into the spot she'd cleared away in between two giant pine trees, clicked off the ignition, and dismounted. She shoved the keys into her jacket pocket, walking along the footpath that led ever-upward. She finally reached the very top. A rock outcrop overreached the giant wall of the plateau and when you stood on the edge, the breeze would make you feel as if you were flying.

Sky's old leather boots made dull thuds on the needle-littered ground and she walked out onto the outcrop. She sat down about a foot away from the edge and lay down on the cool stone. Her hair blew in the gentle breeze, tickling her nose.

Sky gazed up at the stars, face lightening faintly as she spotted the different constellations in the midnight sky. The familiar formations made themselves known to the eighteen year-old, causing her eyes to sparkle.

That was her place; she'd found the old trail a few years previous, but she'd never told anyone about it. She always went there to clear her head and relax her overactive mind.

Sky breathed in the cool night air, held it in her lungs, and let it out again as a sigh. Orion's Belt twinkled coldly and she closed her eyes, listening to the quiet sounds of night: owls hooting and crickets chirping, with the occasional wolf howling to his mother moon.

The next day was the day that she'd receive her letter from Starfleet, whether she'd be accepted into the Academy or not.

Honestly, she hoped with all of her heart that she would get accepted, but there was some doubt lingering in the back of her mind. Who would want an orphaned girl for a Starfleet Officer? She knew the Starfleet Council would read over her admission letter; they'd discuss it, look up her records, and come to a conclusion. Sometimes people made it, sometimes they didn't. Sky feared this.

"Oh, dad. What would you do if I got declined?" she murmured to the stars, hoping for an answer. A soft breeze rustled her hair again. A slow, small smile took her face.

"Never mind; I know exactly what you'd do." She gazed up at the stars again and that small smile grew ever wider.

"You'd give 'em hell."

* * *

_Earth, Stardate: 2255.236_

_"__I got accepted!"_

Sky's voice rang throughout the house, causing her elder grandparents to stir from their slumber. Footsteps thudded up the stairs to the second floor and Sky burst into the room, a smile splitting her face in two as she waved the piece of paper around in the air. "Mamaw! Papaw! I got accepted!"

Ashley amusedly replied, "I know, I heard you the first time."

Carl chuckled, sat up against the headboard, and reached towards his nightstand to get his reading glasses. "Bring that over, I want to see it."

Sky obediently strutted over to her grandfather's side and handed him the letter proudly. Carl took it in his wrinkled hand and read it aloud with Ashley peering over his shoulder.

"'_Dear Ms. Lorion, you are hereby accepted into Starfleet Academy by way of your academic scores. Your shuttle-flight tickets will be also included inside this envelope when it is sent. Your classes start at 2250.237. We wish you the best of luck, Admiral Barnett, Starfleet Command.'_

_"_Wow kid, pretty impressive," he congratulated her warmly.

Sky's smile widened and she took back the letter again. "The dorm rooms available are a decent way away from the Academy - within walking distance, in fact, but I'd have to share with another person," she informed them.

"When are you leaving?" inquired Ashley. The young girl noticed the touch of sadness in her bright hazel eyes.

"I think as soon as I finish packing, I guess," Sky replied. "These tickets hold out for almost two months of a free flight to San Fran."

Ashley nodded in understanding, as did Carl. Sky bid them a good morning and left the room, closing the door behind her as she left.

Sky walked down the hall, staring down at the letter in her hands. She couldn't believe it. She actually made it. All those years of building up her education, and she finally made it.

Sky entered her room and folded the paper carefully, placing it back into her envelope that had the United Federation of Planet's crest imprinted in bold navies and silvers. Standing in the middle of her room, she placed her hands on her hips, giving the room a lasting look. "Well, might as well get started."

* * *

_Earth, Stardate: 2255.242_

Standing in the flight deck of Denver, Sky nervously fingered her grip on one of her duffel bags. She stood on front of the ticket agent, who was verifying her flight pass to make sure she was verified. The agent glanced up at Sky and handed the pass back to her. "Your flight is on Deck five and takes off in fifteen minutes."

Sky nodded and accepted the pass before shoving it in her jacket pocket. "Thank you," she said before turning towards the lift and walking forward, boots thudding on the polished marble floor.

"Sky!"

The young woman turned and smiled as she saw her brother come up with his wife Amy in tow, Ashley and Carl following. Amy had resorted to waddling ever since she hit her seven month.

"Amy," Sky scolded gently with a small smile, "you should be home resting."

Amy huffed and shot a pointed look at Ryan. "I would be, but your stubborn brother insisted that I come to see you off." Her tone was scolding but she smiled anyway.

Sky's smile widened and set her bags on the floor so she could hug her pregnant sister-in-law. "Send me pictures when he's born," she whispered in Amy's ear.

"I promise," she responded softly.

Sky let go of Amy and turned to her grandparents. She smiled sadly and hugged them both at the same time. "I'm going to miss you," she murmured.

"No, you're not," Carl said with his gentle grin. Sky chuckled and finally turned to her brother, who had a twisted smirk splayed across his lips.

"Don't," Sky warned when she moved to hug him, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"I wasn't gonna say anythin'," he replied innocently.

"You were thinking it," Sky countered teasingly.

"_Flight one-fifteen will take off in ten minutes. All flight attendants to Shuttle one-fifteen, please report._"

Sky glanced up at the speakers before grabbing her duffels again. She bade her family farewell and walked to the lift, stepping inside with a few other people. Just before the doors closed Sky waved one last time, her family copying with smiles all around.

The doors closed and Sky let out a determined sigh and nodded to the other recruits in the lift. One person in particular, a woman, caught Sky's attention. She had long, dark brown hair and pretty dark blue eyes - almost like an ocean blue. She wore black skinny jeans and a long-sleeve light green t-shirt; she looked to be about two years older than Sky.

The woman met Sky's gaze, smiled kindly, and Sky returned it. The lift doors opened again and the ones who were going to fly on the shuttle filed out. The flight deck was like the general ones scattered about the planet; very lofty ceilings with a giant hole for the west wall. The shuttle itself was of fair size: bigger than the normal ones used at for maintenance Spacestation I which orbited Earth, but smaller than the ones used for starships.

The group headed for the open doors of the shuttlecraft and Sky let all of the others go first before stepping up the ramp. She took the last seat in the back right corner beside the other woman.

Sky set her duffels beside her and slipped her arms through the safety restraints, clicking the metal lock across her chest and laying her forearms on the armrests.

The woman did the same and rested her head on the wall behind the seat. Sky looked at her concernedly. "Somethin' wrong?" she asked.

The woman pried an eye open and stared at Sky. "I have pteromerhanophobia; I don't like flying very much."

Sky shrugged her shoulders agreeably. "I have acrophobia. Heights aren't my thing; that's why I'm glad there's no window over here."

The woman hesitated before holding out a hand in a friendly gesture. "I'm April Ranford. What's your name?"

"Sky. Sky Lorion," Sky replied taking April's hand and giving it a firm shake. "Nice to meet you."

* * *

The shuttle ride was, in total, about eight hours long, so when they hit four, Sky relaxed and slept the rest of the way there; but until that point, the two women had introduced themselves further. April had told Sky that she was headed for the Science Labs aboard a starship, while Sky had laughed and replied that she wanted the same, only to be a Science Officer. April had replied with, _'I wouldn't want that responsibility; I'm too clumsy.'_

The shuttle landed with no problem and Sky was awakened by the quieting of the engines and the jolt of the landing-gear meeting the cemented ground. Sky unbuckled herself and she and April gathered their things before exiting the shuttle.

They left the landing port, and Sky glanced over her letter, searching for the place where the dorms were.

April peered over shoulder at said letter. "You have a dorm, too?" she asked.

Sky nodded and showed her the letter fully. "I have Dorm 221; I have a roommate but I haven't met him or her. I hope it's not a guy," she muttered.

April laughed at that. "Don't worry; I think they separate genders when it comes to dorms," she informed her. Sky let out a sigh of relief.

They decided to get a cab together, since their dorms were in the same building. Sky hailed one and they loaded up their bags in the trunk before sitting in the back seat.

It was evening in San Francisco and the sun was setting, leaving cool air behind. The lights from the surrounding vehicles flashed in the darkening night and Sky watched everything, her eyes sparkling with the delight of being somewhere new - or, at least, somewhere not visited in a long time.

They reached their destination and the women bid their goodbyes before going their separate ways.

Sky walked down the hall of the third floor and glanced at the doors' signs before her eyes finally settled on the brass plate that read _221_. Typing in the passcode given in the letter, Sky opened the door and lugged her suitcases inside. There was another woman in the room about same age as Sky. The new arrival must have surprised the woman, who actually fell out of her desk chair.

Sky blinked as the woman collapsed onto the carpeted ground in a jumble of chestnut-brown hair and dark brown, almost black eyes. After a second the woman scrambled to her feet and greeted Sky nonchalantly.

"Hi! I'm Natasha Adams - nice to meet you!" she said excitedly, throwing out her hand to shake.

Sky blinked again before taking her hand politely. "I'm Sky Lorion; you're, uh, my roommate?" she inquired, seeing if Natasha was aware of the fact she was having a roommate.

"Oh yeah! The letter said I'd have a roommate, but I've never had one before so I was kinda nervous you'd be a guy," Natasha scratched the back of her neck with a nervous laugh.

Sky laughed in response and shut the door behind her. "Nah, that's fine. I thought you'd be a guy, too, so it's even."

Natasha grinned. "Well, now that that's out of the way - do you want me to help you move in?"

Natasha assisted Sky in moving into the dorm, putting her clothes in the opposite side of the largely-sized closet and helping out with her few belongings. There were two beds in the room, opposite of each other. A window showed the streets below and all of the life of a San Franciscan evening.

Out of exhaustion, Sky gathered a navy blue undershirt with matching color shorts and some undergarments before entering the fairly-sized bathroom and stripping down. She turned the sonic on, but set it to the shower setting and let the water warm up before stepping inside and closing the clear, glass door.

The hot water sprayed from the showerhead, causing steam to rise from the stall and fog up the mirror. Sky stood with her face to the water-flow, letting the water cascade down her smooth skin and legs and into the drain. She scrubbed away all of the grime away from her skin and cleansed her hair with lavender-scented shampoo.

Once she finished washing herself, Sky turned the shower off and stepped out of the stall before grabbing a towel from the rack next to the shower and wrapping it around her. After she dried herself off, Sky dressed herself in the clothes she'd brought and wrapped the towel around her hair, twisting it tightly so the water would be absorbed.

Sky stepped out of the bathroom only to find Natasha fast asleep in her bed, which was located to the right of the door. She tip-toed to her bed and pulled the sheets back before slipping under the cool, thinly-woven fabric. She rested her head on the pillow and gazed up at the ceiling until sleep forced her to close her eyes and fall into its warm arms.


	3. Mr Kirk the Playboy

**-Chapter 2-**

_Earth, Stardate: 2255.273_

A month had passed, and the classes had only just begun and were going good for all three of the women. As was promised, April focused in mainly in the Biological Sciences and Natasha was in the Medical field, acing both of their classes with straight A's. Sky continued with her plan of taking most of the general Sciences.

Sky hurried down the hallway, trying to get to her next class without running late. She held her PADD to her uniform-clad chest, trying to get to the classroom without running into anyone. But, unfortunately, things didn't run according to plan.

The hallway was dissipating with red-clad cadets and she picked up her pace. She was headed for her new Computer Physics class - the lecture room was just around the corner.

Just as she rounded the corner, Sky rammed into a solid body and fell back. Her PADD flew out of her hands and landed a few feet away with a slight clacking sound.

Sky was about to snap at the person but when she looked up, she held her tongue. A tall man stood over her, his pale face impassive as he gazed down at her. He was, overall, unruffled by her speedy intersection. His dark eyes flicked over her, and turned and kneeled down before taking her PADD in his hand.

Sky clambered to her feet with a bright red blush burning her cheeks. "I-I'm sorry, Commander! I was just running late and I didn't want to miss your lecture!" she apologized profusely.

The man held out his arm PADD in hand and she accepted it gratefully. "Thank you, sir," she acknowledged his gesture.

The man was dressed in the bleak, gray uniform that all of the professors and higher-ups wore around the Academy and in public; although she could tell he was sturdily built beneath the articles of clothing. He held himself with a ramrod-straight back, as he looked down at her - and she realized that she was about three inches below his eye-level, making her feel the slightest bit intimidated. He had high cheekbones, a strong jaw, and a well-defined nose; his eyebrows were straight but slanted upward as they moved further along his forehead. His ears were rounded around the backs but came to a point at the tips, giving him an almost elvish look. His face was impassive and without any visible expression.

Knowing that Vulcans - which was what species this man was - didn't shake hands, Sky thought better of it and formed her hand in a perfectly-practiced Vulcan Salute. The professor raised an eyebrow slightly at the gesture but returned it nonetheless.

"You are Cadet Lorion."

Sky didn't know if it was an inquiry or not, given that his flat tone gave no indication of…well, anything.

"Y-yes, sir." She shifted her weight under his scrutiny. "I was headed to my Computer Physics class."

His eyebrow twitched the faintest millimeter. "I am the teacher for the Computer Physics class."

Feeling her cheeks blaze up again, Sky bit her lip nervously. "And…you're here because…"

"One of the Cadets insisted that I search for her colleague before initiating my lecture," he informed her. "She said to search for one Cadet Lorion."

_'__April, I am going to kill you,'_ Sky thought, feeling embarrassed and frustrated.

"Y-yes, sir. That was probably April - Cadet Ranford."

He nodded ever the slightest, and wordlessly turned on his heel and glided down the hall towards his classroom.

Sky blinked and followed briskly behind, having to trot to keep up with his long-legged strides. "S-sir, I'm sorry I caused you the inconvenience," she said behind him.

"It was of no inconvenience, Cadet Lorion," he responded, almost automatically.

She blinked again dumbly. She didn't know what to think of him. The only word that came to mind to describe him was _'majestic'_.

* * *

_Stardate: 2258.42_

Sky was walking leisurely down the sidewalk towards the Simulations and Space Training Building when she heard two sets of footsteps behind her. She glanced over her shoulder and saw Natasha running after her with April in tow.

"Sky, wait!" Natasha called frantically.

Three years had passed and Sky had ended up being able to graduate early because of her quick progression through her courses; she would be released and in only a few weeks as a Lieutenant of Starfleet, whereas her two companions would follow a year afterwards. Sky feared she'd end up different starship than her two companions.

"Dammit, Natasha! I can't run that fast!" April complained, wrenching her hand from Natasha's iron grip when they reached her. They continued on their way towards the building, building mild conversation all the while.

"So I heard that playboy cadet is taking the Test again," Natasha stated with a bounce of her heels.

Sky nodded in confirmation. "Yeah; the one who flirted with me all during Professor Pike's class. You should've seen the look on his face when Pike caught him; it was priceless!"

Sky, being one of the leaders in aptitude and grade levels, was asked for the third - and hopefully _final_ time - to be a part of the 'bridge crew' for the Kobayashi Maru Test. And because she had taken a couple of Command courses, should the need arise for her to take command of a vessel, her requirement for experience gave her no choice in the matter.

"Yeah, but I think it's stupid that he's taking the Test again. I mean, he's failed the first two times - why does he think he'll be able to do it now?" April stated while crossing her arms.

"That's what you said the last time," Sky reminded her friend with a pointed look.

They entered the building, and April and Natasha bid Sky good luck before leaving for their separate classes.

"We are receiving a distress signal from the _U.S.S. Kobayashi Maru_; the ship has lost its power and is stranded. Starfleet Command has ordered us to rescue them."

Sky glanced up at the young Cadet that was playing the part for Communications Officer. She seemed bored with the circumstances of the situation, having done it the previous times already. Sky was sitting at the Science station and going over the readings that were given automatically by the computer.

"Starfleet Command has ordered us to rescue them…_Captain_." The cadet in the Captain's chair paused his sentence dramatically, as if teasing the linguist. Sky figured so; the cadet in the chair was none other than Jim Kirk, the legendary playboy. Of course he'd be teasing her - she probably rejected him.

The man at Navigations rolled his hazel eyes and looked back down at his readout screen. Sky continued to watch the situation through her peripheral vision.

"Two Klingon vessels have entered the Neutral Zone; they're locking weapons on us," the brunette said, voice having the faintest drizzle of a southern accent. Sky grinned at the likeness with her grandfather.

"That's okay," said Kirk, shrugging his shoulders nonchalantly.

"That's okay?" The looking over at him again, expression incredulous.

"Yeah - don't worry about it," the blonde replied.

Sky furrowed her brows at him; the past two times Kirk had taken it at least a little seriously, but now he was just cocky as a rooster in a yard full of hens.

"Three more Klingon Warbirds decloaking and targeting our ship. I don't suppose this is a problem either?" He gave an exasperated look to Kirk. He must've been a colleague of the blonde.

Sky turned her attention to her console as the simulated Klingons began their programmed assault. "They're firing, Captain," she informed him without looking up.

Kirk continued, raising his hand and voice to reach across the bridge. "Alert Medical Bay to receive _all _crewmembers from the damaged ship," he ordered the linguistics cadet.

"And how do you expect us to rescue them when we're surrounded by Klingons, _Captain_?" she demanded, crossing her arms and giving him an unconvinced look.

"Alert Medical," he replied with a sardonic grin, turning his seat towards her.

"Our ship is being hit," the brunette continued. "Shields at sixty percent."

"I understand," Kirk acknowledged, reaching between his leg and the armrest and magically pulling out an apple from nowhere.

"Are you just going to sit there while we're blown to bits?" Sky cut in, staring at Kirk with an ambiguous look plastered over her face.

"Nah," Kirk responded, taking a bite out of the apple.

Sky stared disbelievingly but turned back to her station, shaking her head.

Suddenly, the computer systems began to shut down. Sky confusedly pressed at some of the controls in her station, trying to eliminate the problem and solve it before something worse happened. Then, just as suddenly as it happened, the systems flickered back to life.

"Hm," Kirk said thoughtfully. "Arm photons and prepare to fire upon the Klingon Warbirds."

"Yes, sir," a Tactical lieutenant responded, keying in the command.

"Jim, their shields are still up," the brunette cut in.

"Are they?" Kirk tilted his head considerately, taking another obnoxious bite of apple.

The doctor turned and scanned the readings over, eyebrows rising in disbelief. "No - they're not," he said, mostly to himself.

"Fire on _all_ enemy ships; one photon each should do. Let's not waist ammunition," Kirk ordered the Tactical lieutenant with a broad smirk.

"Target locked and acquired on all Warbirds," he told him after locking onto the enemy vessels. "Firing."

As the torpedoes began to blow the ships into debris, Kirk immaturely used his fingers as a gun and made a _'pew'_ sound around the mouthful of apple that he hadn't chewed.

"All ships destroyed, Captain."

"Begin rescue of the stranded crew," Kirk ordered before standing briskly. "So - we've managed to eliminate all enemy ships; no one on board was injured - and," he added, slapping the brunette's shoulder, "the successful rescue of the _Kobayashi Maru_ crew is…underway." He finished with chomping into the apple again, smacking spitefully and turning to the overlooking superiors in the observation box.

* * *

"This session has been called to resolve a troubling matter," Admiral Barnett stated into the microphone sitting on the long crescent-shaped table; all of the other Starfleet Admirals were sitting along the back of it. "James T. Kirk, step forward."

Sky was sitting among the few other early graduates in the front row with an unknown Commander beside her. Out of her peripheral she saw Kirk stand and start to walk down the steps toward the platform.

"Cadet Kirk, evidence has been submitted to this Council suggesting that you violated the ethical code of conduct pursuant to Regulation 17.43 of the Starfleet Code," Barnett continued as Kirk stood at the left altar. "Is there anything you care to say before we begin, sir?"

Kirk paused before looking at the Admiral. "Yes - I believe I have the right to face my accuser directly," he averred, glancing behind him at the crowd of Starfleet cadets and commanders.

Barnett simply looked to a place behind Kirk and Sky saw Spock stand and straighten his uniform despite it already being board-stiff.

"Step forward, please," Barnett carried on, to which Spock walked gracefully down the steps and stood before the second altar. "This is Commander Spock. He is one of our most distinguished graduates. He's programmed the _Kobayashi Maru_ exam for the last four years."

Spock and Kirk's eyes met for a second and Sky knew right then that this would not result well. From the time she'd known Spock, even if he kept most of his personal references hidden, she knew that he was respecting of authority and not one to tolerate the breaking of rules - and she'd heard enough about Kirk to know he was almost as stubborn as an Andorian Bullionophar.

"Commander?" Barnett prompted Spock to speak.

Spock began boldly and clearly, and Sky figured even the people in the back of auditorium would be able to hear him even without the aid of the microphone. "Cadet Kirk, you somehow managed to install and activate a subroutine in the programming code, thereby changing the conditions of the test."

"Your point being?" Kirk inquired, keeping his gaze forward. It was obvious he was trying not to take a jab at his superior.

"In academic vernacular, you cheated," Barnett supplied - to which the crowd started murmuring.

"Let me ask you something I think we all know the answer to," Kirk responded. "The test itself is a cheat, isn't it? I mean - you programmed it to be unwinnable."

"Your argument precludes the possibility of a no-win scenario," Spock contradicted factually.

"I don't believe in no-win scenarios," Kirk countered with a slight smirk.

Sky slowly raised a hand to her face, rubbing her forehead with her fingertips. A headache was starting to pulse behind her eyes.

"Then only did you violate the rules, you also failed to understand the principle lesson," Spock retorted, looking over at the blonde cadet.

"Please - enlighten me." Kirk's voice was laced with a hint of sarcasm, staring over at the Vulcan Commander.

"You of all people should know, Cadet Kirk - a captain cannot cheat death."

Sky's eyes widened and she stared at the back of Spock's head. The murmuring in the crowd, which had ceased earlier, started up again, but louder than before.

"I of all people." Kirk was starting to sound irritated - even a little hurt.

"Your father, Lieutenant George Kirk, assumed command of his vessel before being killed in action, did he not?" Spock inquired.

"I don't think you like the fact that I beat your test," Kirk supposed, voice almost dripping with incredulity.

"Furthermore, you have failed to divine the purpose of the test," Spock continued.

"Enlighten me again," Kirk requested between clenched teeth.

Spock met his gaze coolly. "The purpose is to experience fear - fear in the face of certain death. To accept that fear, and maintain control of oneself and one's crew. This is a quality expected in every Starfleet captain."

"Not everyone's a Vulcan," Sky mumbled quietly.

Suddenly, a young man entered the room and went to Barnett's side. "Excuse me sir," he stated quietly, handing the Admiral a PADD that obviously had a message of some sort. Barnett's brow furrowed as he read the message over. His dark eyes flitted up to the silent audience.

"We've received a distress call from Vulcan."


	4. Distress Call from Vulcan

**A/N: Thank you, T'Liana for the help on the Stardates. I hope I got them right now… *nervous shrug* Sorry for the mix-up on the last chapter; it's fixed now. Please Review!**

**-Chapter 3-**

Sky's eyes widened and she looked to Spock, who didn't say anything. The murmuring in the crowd proceeded into a confused clamor to which Barnett had to raise his voice. "With our primary fleet engaged in the Laurentian system, I hereby order all cadets to report to Hangar One immediately. Dismissed."

In unison, all of the people who were seated stood and started filing out of the auditorium towards Hanger Bay One; Sky soon lost sight of Spock and Kirk within all of the turmoil. She followed everyone else and pretty soon she found herself in the Hangar Bay, lining up to be called for a starship.

Starfleet operatives and engineers were working frantically to prep the shuttles for launch, and given the short time that the order had been issued they were mostly stumbling around with high-pitched orders and shouts.

"Fugeman, _Regula One_! Gerace, _U.S.S. Farragut! _Lorion,_ U.S.S. Enterpise! _McCoy, _U.S.S. Enterprise_! Mcgrath, _U.S.S Walcott_! Radar, _U.S.S. Hood_! Welcome to Starfleet; Godspeed," finished the advisor after reading off the names from his PADD.

Sky saw the doctor from the Kobayashi Maru test and from the way he responded she figured that he was the one called McCoy. Storing this new information in her mind, she started towards the shuttlecraft that would take the recruits to the Spacestation I. She also saw the African-American Lieutenant stalk past her but Sky didn't say anything.

Once she reached the shuttlecraft, Sky waited patiently as the line of cadets filed into said hovercraft one-by-one. Finally when she was able to board it herself, Sky walked up the steps and strapped herself into the seat farthest away from the windows, although it was hard because there was one everywhere you looked.

Sky closed her eyes and leaned back into the chair: then with horror it struck her. Natasha and April weren't there. She was about to unstrap herself and sprint out of the craft to search for her friends, when the devils that were spoken of entered the craft. Natasha waved at her with a smile and April simply rolled her eyes before they both sat in the other end of the craft.

Sky let out a sigh of relief and leaned into the chair again, waiting for the takeoff maneuvers to begin the flight into space. She was interrupted from her thoughts when the familiar monotone of the first Vulcan to ever enroll in Starfleet reached her ears.

"Would it be acceptable if I took up this seat for the ride to Spacestation I?"

Sky opened her eyes and smiled slightly at the Commander. "Of course; I'd rather have you for the ride than some other immature cadet," she replied with a small chuckle.

Spock nodded slightly and set himself down into the seat to her left, strapping the safety restraints around his torso accordingly and without the fumbling that Sky had had. Pretty soon the shuttles of Hanger One started up their engines and flew out of their containment, going into open air and upwards into the sky: higher and higher with every passing second.

Sky clutched the arm of her chair and was thankful that Spock didn't say anything about her strange behavior. Vulcans didn't have phobias that she knew of. Shortly afterwards, they reached the cold blackness of space: stars twinkled and Sky cracked an eye open to look at them.

Orion's Belt winked back.

Then her other eye snapped open when she saw it: docked at Spacestation I was the most beautiful starship she'd ever seen.

"_U.S.S. Enterprise_, NCC-1701," she whispered in awe. She'd heard of the newly built starship but hadn't seen even one picture- or anything of the sort, for that matter.

Spock raised an eyebrow slightly at her reaction to the starship. The _Enterprise_ was just a recently developed type of vessel with refined designs and machinery: and in human terms, 'the best of its kind.' He did not understand why one would be amazed by simple engineering (of course, she was human, and humans were illogical 87.46 percent of the time).

Coming around the back of the ship, the shuttlecrafts hovered in waiting for the hangar bay doors to open. The giant metal hatches slowly began to move apart, and one-by-one the shuttles began to file into the deck. Landing side-by-side, the hovercrafts' engines shut down and the access hatches on the sides opened with a 'swish', allowing the newly-made lieutenants to exit and report to their assigned stations.

Shortly after she went to one of the uniform rooms and changed into her blue, short-sleeved Science uniform dress, Sky walked out and saw Spock walking towards the turbolift in his own uniform. Sky followed him through the throng of people and started walking beside him. "I just wanted to say good luck for you on the Bridge before I headed off to the Science Labs," she said.

"You are not in the Science Labs, Lieutenant," replied the Vulcan. "You are assigned to the Bridge."

Sky tilted her head in confusion but continued to follow him towards the turbolift. "But last time I checked, I was assigned to Science Lab Six, Deck Four," she said uncertainly.

Spock raised his PADD and showed Sky her assignment. Sure enough: she was assigned to the Bridge. She furrowed her brow perplexedly. "Someone must've changed my assignment orders while we were flyin' up here," she stated, mostly to herself.

"You are correct, Lieutenant. I did," Spock informed her, leaving the young woman behind in a shocked stupor. She hurried to catch up with him; he entered the turbolift she squeezed into it just as the doors were closing. She stood beside him and nodded her head respectfully. "Thank you, sir," she stated gratefully.

"It was only logical, Lieutenant," he replied. The doors opened and they both stepped aboard the Bridge. Spock and Sky filed over to the right-hand side of the bridge and Captain Pike greeted them warmly. "Mr. Spock; Ms. Lorion."

"Captain," they acknowledged politely. Sky automatically began to run a check-over on her systems, as did Spock.

"Engineering reports ready for launch," said the Commander, glancing at the Captain before turning fully to his station.

"Thank you," Pike responded. "Ladies and gentlemen, the maiden voyage of our newest flagship deserves more pomp and circumstance than we can afford today. Her christening will just have to be our reward for a safe return. Carry on," he announced to the Bridge before sitting down in the Captain's Chair. "All decks, this is Captain Pike: prepare for immediate departure. Helm, thrusters."

Sky admired the fact that the Captain was able to give orders so smoothly and firmly, yet with a gentleness a father would have as he would instruct a child.

The helmsman replied automatically. "Moorings retracted, Captain. Dock Control reports ready. Thrusters fired: separating from Spacedock," he listed off as if it were imprinted in his brain.

The low, humming vibration that Sky could feel through her feet elevated slightly as the _Enterprise_ maneuvered away from the Spacestation. "The 'fleet's cleared Spacedock, Captain. All ships ready for warp," the helmsman carried on.

"Set course for Vulcan."

"Aye-aye, Captain; course laid in."

"Maximum warp: punch it."

The helmsman gripped the lever and pushed it forward, causing the engines, which had been only slightly working, to purr loudly as the warp order was given out to the machinery. The other ships around the _Enterprise _now began to flash blue and disappear as they hit light-speed. However, the _Enterprise_ remained in place.

All of the bridge members turned to look at the helmsman expectantly, to which he started nervously fiddling with the controls at his station. Pike now leaned his elbow on the armrest of his chair and rubbed his slightly prickly jaw. "Lieutenant, where's Helmsman McKenna?" he asked patiently, although slight agitation was clear in his bodily movements.

"He has lungworms, sir; he couldn't report to his post. I'm Hikaru Sulu," Sulu turned in his seat to face the pepper-haired captain.

"And you are a pilot, right?"

"Very much so, sir." Sulu turned back around and continued to tap in commands to the computer to try and see what was wrong. "I'm, uh, not sure what's wrong here."

"Is the parking brake on?" Pike derisively inquired, although warmth was in the statement as well. Sky coughed to cover up a laugh.

"No, I'll figure it out, I'm just…"

Spock opened his mouth but Sky beat him to it.

"Have you disengaged the external inertial dampener?" she asked the struggling Japanese pilot. Sulu typed in a command and let out an inaudible sigh, leaning back in his chair. The whole situation was embarrassing. "Ready for warp, sir."

Sky caught Spock's gaze and she saw a slight fascinated look in his usually impassive brown eyes, but he turned away to his station a moment after. Pike uncrossed his arms and tried his last order again, smirking slightly. "Let's punch it."

Sulu tested the lever again and this time the engines roared to life, sending the ship hurtling into warp speed.

"Engines at maximum warp, Captain," Sulu informed Pike.

Pike now addressed his attention to the young man sitting at the Navigations Station. "Russian whiz kid- what's your name? Chanko? Cherpov?"

"Ensign Chekov; Pavel Andreievich, sir," answered the teenager - Sky knew he was a teenager by his younger countenance - turning in his chair to face the Captain directly.

"Fine; Chekov, Pavel Andreievich. Begin ship-wide mission broadcast," Pike ordered.

"Yes sir, happy to," the Russian replied, turning to his station again. "Ensign Authorization code nine-five-wictor-wictor-two," he addressed the computer.

"_Authorization not recognized_," replied the computer.

"Ensign Authorization code…" he paused for emphasis before continuing. "nine-five-_victor_-_victor_-two."

"_Access granted_."

Chekov sighed quietly before giving the message. "May I hafe your attention please? At tventy-two hundred hours telemetry detected an anomaly in ze Neutral Zone: what appeared to be a lightning storm in space. Soon after, Starfleet received a distress signal from ze Wulcan High Command that their planet was experiencing seismic actiwity. Our mission is to assess the condition of Wulcan and assist in the ewacuations if necessary. Ve should be arriving at Wulcan within three minutes; thank you for your time."

'You'd think that after three centuries the computers would learn to decipher accents,' Sky thought half-amused.

Then the doors suddenly opened and Kirk, McCoy, and the African-American lieutenant burst into the bridge.

"Jim, come back here!" exclaimed McCoy who was only two steps behind the 'academically suspended' cadet.

"Captain! Captain Pike, sir," Kirk exclaimed exasperatedly. "We have to stop the ship!"

"Kirk, how the hell did you get onboard the Enterprise?" Pike demanded. Sky and Spock stood and started towards Pike's side.

"Captain, this man's under the influence of a severe reaction to a vaccine," McCoy stated gesturing towards Kirk.

"Bones, please," Kirk begged.

"He's completely delusional and I take full responsibility-"

"Vulcan is experiencing a natural disaster, it's being attacked by Romulans," Kirk persisted loudly, catching the attention of everyone in the room, if he hadn't already.

"Romulans? Cadet Kirk, I think you've had enough attention for one day." He stared at the doctor. "McCoy, take him back to medical; we'll have words later."

"Aye, Captain," McCoy reached for Kirk but he darted out of his arm-range before he could. "Look sir, that same anomaly that we saw today-"

Kirk was cut off by Spock stepping closer to Pike, followed by Sky. "Mr. Kirk is not cleared to be aboard this vessel, Captain."

"I get it; you're a great arguer-"

"By Regulations-"

"I'd love to do it again..."

"That makes him a stowaway. I can remove the cadet-"

"Try it!"

"Kirk," Pike started.

"This cadet is trying to _save_ the Bridge!" Kirk yelled frustratingly.

"By recommending a full stop mid-warp during a rescue mission?" Spock inquired incredulously.

"It's not a rescue mission. Listen to me; it's an attack," Kirk looked to Pike, silently pleading him to listen.

"Based on what facts?" Spock persisted louder.

"Stop!" Sky snapped at them, silencing the men.

Kirk took a deep breath before continuing. "That same anomaly - a lightning storm in space that we saw today - also occurred on the day of my birth, before a Romulan ship attacked the _U.S.S. Kelvin_." He looked at Pike pointedly, "You know that sir; I read your dissertation. That ship which had formidable and advanced weaponry was never seen or heard from again. The _Kelvin_ attack took place on the edge of Klingon space and at 2300 hours last night there was an attack. Forty-seven Klingon Warbirds were destroyed by Romulans, sir, and it was reported that the Romulans were in one ship; one massive ship."

"And you know of this Klingon attack how?" Pike inquired, to which Kirk looked at the Lieutenant pointedly.

"Sir, I intercepted and translated the message myself. Kirk's report is accurate," she supplied hesitantly.

"We're warping into a trap, sir," Kirk insisted. "The Romulans are waiting for us; I promise you that."

Pike looked at his First Officer and Spock tersely replied. "The cadet's logic is sound. And Lieutenant Uhura is unmatched in xenolinguistics. We would be wise to accept her conclusion."

'So that's her name,' Sky concluded thoughtfully.

"Scan Vulcan space; check for any transmissions in Romulan," Pike ordered the Communications Officer.

"Sir, I'm not sure I can distinguish the Romulan language from Vulcan," stated the red-shirted lieutenant hesitantly, looking at him apologetically. Pike walked toward Uhura, "What about you? Do you speak Romulan, Cadet…?"

"Uhura; all three dialects sir," she replied.

"Uhura, relieve the lieutenant."

"Yes sir."

"Hannity, hail the _U.S.S. Truman_," Pike commanded.

"All other ships are out of warp, sir, and have arrived at Vulcan but we seem to have lost all contact," said Hannity, glancing at him with confusion.

Uhura cut in, "Sir, I pick up no Romulan transmission- or any transmission of any kind in the area."

"It's because they're being attacked," Kirk persevered.

Pike turned and sat in his chair again. "Shields up; Red Alert." Alarms started to sound and the bridge members flicked the switches at their stations in reply. Sky, Spock, and Kirk braced themselves for the jolt that was yet to come. Sky and Spock's eyes met again and she shook her head slightly, indicating that she didn't know what was going to happen next.

"Arrival at Vulcan in five seconds," Sulu called. "Four, three, two…"

The ship jumped out of warp, and everyone on the bridge was jolted to attention by the horror that lay before them.


	5. The Narada

**A/N: Ah, school. Don't like it at all (mostly because I can't write all day xP). Please Review!**

**-Chapter 4-**

Debris lay everywhere before them on the main view screen. With a shock of adrenaline Pike ordered quickly, "Emergency evasive!"

"On it, sir."

As the ship jostled about, Spock's arm appeared around Sky's waist and she was deposited at her station before he stood at his, trying to analyze the situation. The bridge erupted into a clamor and the ship was tossed to the left, making everyone who was in their seats lean over exponentially. The _Enterprise_ whined at the sudden change of course and as debris hit her outer hull.

"Damage report!"

"Deflector shields are holding, sir!" Sky called to the captain.

"All stations! Engineer Olson, report!" Pike commanded into the comm unit in his chair.

Most of the larger debris the _Enterprise_ could dodge, but there was the occasional larger piece that would fly against the shields and further damage the ship. The _Enterprise_ spun around as if she were an acrobat above the Vulcan atmosphere, trying to avoid the inevitable outcome if she were to crash into one of the left-over hull chunks that floated about the space surrounding the planet.

"Full reverse; come about starboard ninety degrees," Pike ordered. "Drop us down underneath them, Sulu."

The starship ducked under the giant hull piece but one of the nacelles caught against it and knocked some of the protective plating clean off. There looming before them in an uncannily eerie colossus of metal spikes was a starship of massive size: almost a hundred times bigger than the_ Enterprise_. Sky's eyes widened and she glanced at Spock a moment, confusion, wonder, and horror written clearly into her face.

"Captain, they're locking torpedoes," Spock warned leaning towards his console.

"Divert auxiliary power from port nacelles to forward shields!" Pike instructed.

Oddly shaped missiles appeared on the screen of Sky's console and she watched helplessly as they came closer. "Captain, they're comin' right at us!" she yelled loudly. The rumble in the lower part of the ship carried a slight vibration into Sky's soles: the ship had been hit badly. "Medical bays hit, Captain!"

"Sulu, status report."

"Shields at thirty-two percent! Their weapons are powerful, sir; we can't take another hit like that!"

"Get me Starfleet Command," Pike ordered, mentally praying that there was a way out of this. The brand-new ship was holding more powerfully than any other ship he would've been assigned on could. He almost winced at the thought of all of those cadets, screaming as their ships were destroyed, ripping them apart either by explosion or the vacuum of space.

"Captain, the Romulan ship has lowered some kind of high-energy pulse device into the Vulcan atmosphere. Its signal appears to be blocking our communications and transporter abilities," Spock averred urgently. Sky could tell, at least a little bit, that he was worried about his home planet.

"All power to forward shields. Prepare to fire all weapons." Pike's brows furrowed even further than they already had been. The same thought that he had was also going through the ship crew's minds: what would the Romulans want with Vulcan?

"Captain, we're being hailed," Uhura called, standing and facing him.

The face of a bald, tattooed Romulan appeared on the screen, which flashed slightly due to interference. "_Hello_," he greeted.

"I'm Captain Christopher Pike; to whom am I speaking?" the Captain inquired formally, although his face remained slightly angered. He did not appreciate the fact that this alien was going to quite possibly add the _Enterprise_ to the wreckage and debris floating above Vulcan.

The Romulan male tilted his head politely. "_Hi Christopher, I'm Nero_."

"You've declared war against the Federation. Withdraw and I'll agree to arrange a conference with the Romulan leadership at a neutral location," Pike suggested diplomatically. Sky had known that there was at least a little bit of politician in those gray-flecked sideburns.

"_I do not speak for the Empire: we stand apart_," Nero replied. "_As does your Vulcan crewmember. Isn't that right, Spock_?"

Spock stood and walked towards the visual on the main viewing screen. "Pardon me; I do not believe you and I are acquainted," Spock presumed, tilting his head by a centimeter.

'They're about to destroy us and he's asking for an introduction? Unbelievable!' Sky thought, more bewildered than angry.

"_No, we're not. Not yet_," stated the Romulan eerily, sending a shiver down Sky's spine. What could that mean?

"_Spock, there's something I would like you to see_."

Nero continued nonchalantly. "_Captain Pike: your transporter has been disabled. As you can see by the rest of your armada, you have no choice. You will man a shuttle and come aboard the _Narada_ for negotiations. That is all_."

The transmission cut out and all eyes turned to Captain Pike, who sat pondering on what would be wisest to do: leave the ship in another's hands and go aboard the _Narada_, or stay and be destroyed with the rest of the crew. The former at least stood a chance at the crew surviving. He stood: they all knew what he was going to do.

"He'll kill you; you know that," Kirk said. Sky realized he'd been silent throughout the whole attack.

"Your survival is unlikely," agreed Spock.

"Captain, we gain nothing by diplomacy. Going over to that ship is a mistake," cut in Sky, who stood firmly in front of Pike.

"I, too, agree. You should rethink your strategy."

"I understand that," acknowledged Pike. Raising his voice to the bridge he called, "I need officers who've been trained in advanced hand-to-hand combat."

"I have training, sir," said Sulu quietly.

"As do I," Sky stated, raising her hand slightly.

"Come with me. Kirk, you too; you're not supposed to be here anyway. Chekov, you have the conn."

"Aye-aye, Keptin."

"Without transporters, we can't' beam off the ship, we can't assist Vulcan, we can't do our job," Pike stated. "Mr. Kirk, Mr. Sulu, and Engineer Olson will space-jump from the shuttle. You will land on that machine they've lowered into the atmosphere that's scrambling our gear. You'll get inside, you disable it, and then you'll beam back to the ship.

"Mr. Spock, I'm leaving you in command of the _Enterprise_. Once we have transporter capability and communications back up, you'll contact what the hell's going on here. And if all else fails, fall back and rendezvous with the 'fleet in the Laurentian system. Lorion, stay here with Spock on the ship. Kirk, I'm promoting you to First Officer."

"What?" Kirk and Sky asked in unison, obviously befuddled.

"Captain? Please, I apologize, the complexities of human pranks escape me," Spock stated, puzzlement almost showing in his eyes.

"It's not a prank, Spock. And I'm not the Captain: you are." Amusement danced around in Pike's dark blue eyes. "Let's go."

Kirk and Spock's eyes locked for a second and an unseen argument ensued within a fraction of a second before the three men walked into the lift. "Sir, after we knock out that drill, what happens to you?" Kirk inquired.

"I guess you'll have to come and get me," Pike replied sarcastically. He looked at Spock seriously. "Careful with the ship, Spock: she's brand new."

Spock raised an eyebrow as the lift doors closed with a hiss and beckoned Sky to follow him with a slight incline of his head. Once back on the Bridge, Spock automatically walked around and sat in the Captain's Chair as if he'd been in that position for years. He looked at Sky who had taken residence at his right. "Lieutenant, as I am now Acting-Captain, I promote you to Science Officer."

Sky gaped at him shocked. "B-but sir! I'm not qualified!" she exclaimed.

Spock gave her a serious look - well, more serious than usual. "I believe you are qualified, Lieutenant: I monitored your progress throughout your years in Starfleet Academy. You have an exceptional ability of professionalism in your studies," he told her truthfully.

Sky blushed slightly. "Uh, th-thank you, sir," she acknowledged gratefully. Spock nodded and turned his attention to the comm unit in the chair. "Dr. Puri, report."

"_It's McCoy: Dr. Puri was on Deck 6. He's dead_," came the reply.

Spock hesitated a second before responding. "Then you have just inherited his responsibility as Chief Medical Officer."

"_Yeah, tell me something I don't know_."

Spock exchanged a glance with Sky who only shrugged. 'I'm sure Natasha likes him,' she thought.

A couple minutes later three icons appeared on the main screen. "Avay team entering ze atmosphere, sor," Chekov stated. "Tventy-sounsand meters."

"Approaching the platform at five-thousand, eight-hundred meters," Sky informed Spock after leaning over Chekov's shoulder to see his read-out screen.

"_Kirk to Enterprise. Distance to target, five-thousand meters_," Kirk said through the communicator in his helmet.

"Forty-six hundred meters from platform," Chekov continued.

"_Forty-five hundred meters to target_." Now it was Sulu.

"_Four-thousand meters_," said Kirk.

"_Three thousand meters_," stated the Engineer.

"_Two-thousand meters; pulling chute_," Sulu informed, Kirk following a second after. Olson, however, did not pull his parachute.

"_Two thousand meters_!"

"_Come on, pull your chute Olson_!" Kirk yelled.

"_No, not yet_! _Not yet_! _Fifteen hundred meters_!" Olson persisted to not pull his chute.

"Come on, you idiot! Pull your chute!" Sky cried into the comm. Olson still did not head her warning.

"_Olson, open your chute_!" Kirk insisted. "_Olson, pull your chute_!"

"_One thousand meters_!"

Finally the engineer pulled his chute, but it was too late. Suddenly the red indicator on the screen disappeared. "O-Olson is gone, sor!" Chekov exclaimed.

Sky stared at the screen, mouth opened slightly in shock. Nothing could disappear that quickly unless it was a highly-powered heat ray or something of the similar.

"Kirk has landed, sir," Sky stated, turning her head to look at the Vulcan. Although there was slight grief for the dead crew-member, there was also determination in her eyes.

Spock knew very well that if Pike had ordered her to go on the space-jump she would've done everything she could to save the foolish engineer.

"The jamming signal's gone. Transport abilities are reestablished," called Uhura from her station.

"Transporter control is reengaged, sor."

"Chekov, run gravitational sensors," Spock ordered the Russian ensign. "I want to know what they are doing to the planet."

"Aye Commander - ach, Keptin, sorry - Keptin."

Kirk's voice buzzed from the communication again. "_Kirk to _Enterprise_. They just launched something at the planet through the hole they just drilled. Do you copy, _Enterprise_?"_

The bridge erupted into chaos once again as the sensors started to go wild; alerts sounded and screens flashed to indicate the unbelievable.

"Captain, gravitational sensors are off the scale. If my calculations are correct, they're creating a singularity…that will consume the planet," Sky said, furrowing her eyebrows. She turned to him with confusion in her eyes.

Spock looked down at the floor, eyebrows furrowing as well. "They're creating a black hole at the center of Vulcan?" Spock murmured quietly, mostly to himself.

Sky nodded sadly. "Yes sir."

Spock gained a look like that Sky had never seen in him before. "How long does the planet have?"

"Minutes, sir. Minutes," she replied quietly.

Spock immediately stood and hurried towards the turbolift. He paused beside Uhura, "Alert Vulcan Command Center to signal a planet-wide evacuation; all channels, all frequencies."

Uhura stood in front of him. "Spock, wait!"

"Maintain standard orbit," he ordered another crewmember.

"Yes, sir."

"Where are you going?" Uhura demanded.

"To evacuate the Vulcan High Council: they are tasked with protecting our cultural history. My parents will be among them."

"Can't you just beam them out?"

"It is impossible. They will be in the Katric Ark. I must get them myself," he said firmly. "Chekov, you have the conn."

"Aye."

Sky had sprinted over and entered the turbolift just as the doors closed, standing beside Spock and giving him an unwavering stare. "I wanna go with you."

Spock hesitated and Sky urged him further. "Every second that's wasted is another second that the Council doesn't have."

He finally nodded and the turbolift's doors opened again and he filed out, Sky trailing behind him determinedly. They walked down the corridor and Spock stopped by an armament closet and got two phasers and utility belts for them both. He handed one to Sky and wordlessly continued down the hall.

Finally they entered the transporter room, finding Kirk and Sulu on the transporter pad groaning painfully. Sky briefly wondered what happened but only continued to strap on the utility belt around her slender waist.

She also wondered how Chekov got in the transporter room after she and Spock left the bridge.

"Clear the pad. We're beaming to the surface," Spock ordered the men while latching the belt around his waist. Sky stood before the two men and she stood on the pad beside Spock once they stumbled off.

"The surface of what?" Kirk asked breathily. "What, are you going down there? Are you nuts? Spock! Sky! You can't do that!"

"Energize."


	6. Mother, Oh Mother

**A/N: Sorry this is late… Oh my god, I cried while writing this chapter. It's so sad! Plus, I plan on writing in Kirk's POV in the next chapter (and possibly the chapter after that, depending on how I write it). Please Review!**

**-Chapter 5-**

"Spock!"

Kirk's warnings were lost to deaf ears as the transporter hummed; bright white lights swirled around the two kneeling persons as they were disestablished into particles and piled back up again on the planet surface.

Sky held her gasp when she saw the terrain around her: tall rock outcrops crumbling to the ground and giant cracks with lava spewing out littered the surrounding landscape.

Spock glanced around at her before taking off towards a sandstone cliff. Sky followed him difficultly due to the shifting sand beneath her boots, but she managed to keep up with his pace. He immediately started up the wall - half stepping, half climbing. Sky scrambled up after him but just as she reached the top, her foot slipped.

Just as she started to fall, Spock grabbed her wrist and pulled her onto the outcrop, setting her down. She stood up and nodded her thanks and they proceeded into the Katric Ark. The tunnel was dark and Sky could hardly see. She was thankful that she could hear Spock's footfalls; otherwise she would've probably gotten nervous. She tried to keep up with the long-legged Vulcan but because of her shorter height she was left about two yards behind.

They finally emerged from the tunnel into a large cavern with arching columns and a high ceiling. Sunlight poured in through the carved places in the stone, shining down upon various statues and relics. Sky didn't think she'd ever see such a place; she figured she was probably causing treason for being an out-worlder on Vulcan in the first place.

They ran up the steps, blocking falling rock bits from their faces with their arms. The High Council was circled around the main statue, who Sky figured was Surak.

"Spock!" breathed the only woman among them.

'She's human,' Sky noted.

"The planet only has seconds left. We must evacuate," Spock stated urgently to all of them. "Mother, now!" In a heartbeat, the Vulcans took off running towards the tunnel, Spock in the front with Sky beside him and Spock's mother clinging to his arm. Suddenly another quake shook the room and a statue fell, crushing one of the Council members with a screech. Sky blocked it out and pulled the lead.

As they sprinted down the hall and the roof behind them caved in, crushing another member. Sky felt a pang of grief but continued on. They had to get out of there at all costs.

They reached the outside of the tunnel and Sky skidded to a halt and Spock whipped out his communicator. "Spock to _Enterprise_; get us out now," he ordered.

"_Locking wolume; don't move. Stay right vhere you are_," came Chekov's answering voice.

The lights started swirling around them but another earthquake shook the ground beneath Sky's feet and she looked up at Spock, eyes wide.

"_Transport in five, four, three, two_…"

Suddenly the cliff started to crumble and Amanda whirled around to face her son. Her gaze softened for a moment and she started to fall with the receding rock. Sky let out a scream and reached out for her. Their hands brushed, but it was too late.

"MOTHER!"

They were beamed aboard the _Enterprise_ again. Spock's arm was still reached out; his face now blatantly showed emotion. Raw, uncaged emotion. His eyes were wide with shock and his mouth slightly agape. Sky was breathing heavily and she looked at him, horror etched into her face.

"I…I lost her…" she whispered, feeling tears start to well up around her eyes. She collapsed to her knees, arms limp beside her. She gazed up at Spock and two tears slid from the corners of her eyes. "I…I'm sorry…"

Everyone was silent. No one spoke. Vulcan was lost.

* * *

"_Acting Captain's Log, Stardate 2258.42. We have had no word from Captain Pike. I have therefore classified him a hostage of the war criminal known as Nero: Nero, who has destroyed my home planet and most of its six billion inhabitants. While the essence of our culture has been saved in the elders who now reside upon this ship, I estimate no more than ten thousand have survived. I am now a member of an endangered species_."

Spock stood from the Captain's chair and didn't pass off the conn to anyone. Uhura stood from her station and followed him into the turbolift, the doors closing behind them. Sky stood from the Science Station and shuffled over to the chair, setting herself down into the plush, faux leather.

The news had spread around the ship like wildfire that she'd almost saved Ambassador Sarek's wife, although no one had confronted her about it. And for that she was glad.

She leaned into the chair and rested her forehead on her fist. Emotions were clashing inside of her like a tsunami of grief looming over a city. She regretted not being able to save Spock's mother. She regretted not seeing the cliff falling quicker; she could've warned her - or she could've pushed her to safety and taken the fall for herself. That probably would've been the most probable possibility.

She felt her face grow hot and she tightened her fists. She wouldn't cry on the bridge. She _couldn't_ cry on the bridge. The crew needed support and someone to look up to. Crying over the loss of Vulcan would only make them fall deeper down into self-pity. But she couldn't stop; the feelings were too much.

"Mr. Chekov…you have the conn," she managed to say breathily as she stood and rushed into the turbolift. As soon as the doors closed she ordered it to take her down to the Medical Bay and she threw herself down on the floor against the wall, pulling her knees up to her chin and burying her face in her hands. Tears started streaming from her eyes and she sobbed for all of the losses that that Romulan – _Nero_ \- had caused. Anger, grief, pity, regret, and hatred flowed into those tears and sobs wracked her body.

The computer let out a soft-toned ding signifying she was on the right deck. She sniffed and wiped her face as best she could with her sleeve before standing and adjusting her uniform. She'd yet to have had a medical examination and she needed to talk with a friend. She walked through the doors and down the hall, ignoring the stares - both human and Vulcan - that were sent her way. She entered the main examination room and saw Natasha leaning over a computer logging in the readings she'd gotten from her last patient.

Sky stood patiently for her friend to turn around. Whenever Natasha did, she jumped slightly. "Oh, Sky! You scared me."

However, the bright smile Natasha wore disappeared quickly when she saw her friend's state: dirty face and torn uniform, clenched fists, and stains where the tears had partly washed away the grime from her cheeks.

"Oh, Sky," she whispered. Sky let out a sniff as the tears started to swell up again. Natasha hugged her old roommate and Sky wrapped her arms around her, crying into her shoulder.

Natasha led her over to one of the biobeds and set Sky down gently. The room was mostly uninhabited due to most of the patients only having minor wounds. The Vulcans were in every spare room aboard the _Enterprise_ but the severely hurt were unconscious in their biobeds across the room. She moved over to one of the comm units on the wall and clicked in the address. "Adams to Science Lab 6; April, are you there?"

"_Yeah, I'm here. What do you need?_"

Natasha glanced over at Sky, who was now lying down with her back facing the nurse. "I need you to come down here. Sky's…"

"_Yeah, I heard. I'll be there in a few minutes._"

"Oh, and April," added Natasha before ending the communication, "Drop by one of the replicators and get a glass of hot chocolate."

* * *

Whenever April showed up, she had a plastic cup with the cocoa-based drink in it. She and Natasha exchanged glances and looked at the Science Lieutenant sympathetically. "She's been like this ever since she got here," Natasha whispered, shaking her head sadly. "I don't really know what's wrong with her."

April sighed and they both walked over to the biobed. She set the cup on the table nearby and Natasha shook Sky's shoulder gently. "Hey, I need to give you an examination. Can you sit up?"

Sky sniffed, nodded, and sat up, slouching over and gazing down at her hands. The same hands that could've saved Amanda. Natasha set up the monitors beside the biobed and began the physical check-up. Sky had managed to get away with only a few scratches and bruises from flying rocks, and for that Natasha thanked whatever deity above them that that was all.

"You seem fine, but I'm a little confused," Natasha told her, crossing her arms. "Yes, we all feel sorry for the remaining Vulcans, but why are you more affected than us?"

Sky didn't answer immediately: instead she let out a sigh and continued to stare at her hands. After a few agonizing moments she started in a voice just above a whisper. "We…beamed down to the planet and Spock led me to the Katric Ark. After we got the Vulcans, two of them got crushed and we got out onto the cliff …Spock's mother…was too close…to the edge." Sky's breaths were now gasps as she tried not to start crying again. "The cliff…crumbled and I…reached out for her…I almost got her, Natasha. _I could've saved her_."

Sky's hands were now fists and hot tears dripped onto the smoke-stained skin.

"But you didn't know her - personally, I mean," April said confusedly. "Why are you so upset?"

Sky forced herself to take a few more deep breaths before continuing. "It was…the look that Spock had…on his face..." she whispered. "I can't get it out of my head…"

April and Natasha both sat down on either side of the weeping Lieutenant, Natasha at her left and April at her right. April let her lean against her and Natasha held her hand. Sky continued to cry and they let her, only knowing that they had to be there for their sorrowful friend.

They were, after all, best friends. Best friends look after each other.

* * *

"Have you confirmed that Nero is headed for Earth?" Spock inquired Uhura, walking around the bridge.

Sky had calmed down enough to go back to the bridge and when she'd gotten there the Command Crew were discussing strategies and possible solutions to the equal onslaught of questions. She stood beside Jim, who was lazing about in the Captain's chair while Spock paced the bridge.

"Their trajectory suggests no other destination, Captain," replied the Communications Officer.

"Thank you, Lieutenant."

"Earth may be his next stop, but we have to assume every Federation planet's a target," Kirk cut in.

"Out of the chair," Spock ordered while passing. Kirk stood and Chekov was the next to speak.

"Vell, if the Federation is a target, vhy didn't zey destroy us?" he inquired.

"Why would they? Why waste a weapon? We obviously weren't a threat," Sulu answered exasperatedly.

"That is not it," Spock said with his pointer finger in the air for emphasis. "He said he wanted me to see something: the destruction of my home planet."

"How the hell did they do that, by the way?" McCoy interrupted. "I mean, where did the Romulans get that kind of weaponry?"

"The engineering comprehension necessary to artificially create a black hole may suggest an answer," Spock replied. "Such technology could theoretically be manipulated to create a tunnel through space-time."

"Dammit, man, I'm a doctor, not a physicist," McCoy snapped. "Are you actually suggesting they're from the future?"

"If you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth."

"How poetic," the doctor muttered.

"Then what would an angry _future_ Romulan want with Captain Pike?" Kirk queried.

"As Captain, he does know details of Starfleet's defenses," Sulu stated matter-of-factly.

"What we need to do is catch up to that ship, disable it, take it over and get Pike back," Kirk stated firmly, almost as if he were the Captain himself.

"We are technologically outmatched in every way. A rescue attempt would be illogical," Spock countered. Sky's brow furrowed in thought. 'Kirk's right,' she reasoned grudgingly.

"Nero's ship vould have to drop out of varp for us to owertake zem," Chekov added.

"Then what about assigning engineering crews to try and boost our warp yield?" Kirk averred exasperatedly.

"Remaining power and crew are being used to repair radiation leaks in the lower decks…"

"Okay: all right…"

"…and damage to subspace communications, without which we cannot contact Starfleet."

"There's got to be some way…"

"We must _gather_ with the rest of Starfleet to balance the terms of the next engagement," Spock finished with a slight bite in his words, as if he were scolding a disobedient child. Sky could feel another argument coming on.

"There won't be a next engagement. By the time we've gathered, it'll be too late," Kirk insisted firmly. "But you say he's from the future, knows what's gonna happen? Then the _logical_ thing is to be _unpredictable_." There was slight mocking in his words.

"You're assuming that Nero knows how events are predicted to unfold. The contrary: Nero's presence has altered the flow of history, beginning with the attack on the U.S.S. Kelvin, culmination in the events of today, thereby creating an entire new chain of incidents that cannot be anticipated by either party," Spock replied factually.

"So you're saying this is an alternate reality?" Sky asked, with which the others realized that she'd been silent the entire time.

"Precisely." Spock looked to her pointedly and back at Kirk. He started for the center of the bridge again. "Whatever our lives might have been if the time continuum was disrupted, our destinies have changed. Mr. Sulu, plot a course for the Laurentian system, Warp Factor three."

"Spock, don't do that," Kirk warned, coming up to him. "Running back to the rest of the 'fleet for a- a confab is a missive waste of time!"

"These are the orders issued by Captain Pike when he left the ship," Spock reminded him.

"He also ordered us to go back and get him! Spock, you are Captain now. You have to make…"

"I am aware of my responsibilities, Mr. Kirk."

"Every second we waste, Nero's getting closer to his next target!"

"That is correct, and why I'm instructing you to accept the fact _I alone_ _am in command_."

"I will not allow us to go backwards…"

"Jim, he's the Captain!"

"…away from the problem, instead of hunting Nero down!"

Spock finally stood, seemingly towering over Kirk as was his frightening demeanor. "Security, escort him out," he ordered before seating himself again.

Two redshirts came and grabbed Kirk's arms, pulling him towards the turbolift. Kirk struggled for a bit before ripping his arm from one of the men's grip and elbowing him in the face. He began fighting both of the men, knocking them out before trying to turn. However, Spock came up behind him and placed his hand on the place where his neck and shoulder met, tightening his grip before Kirk dropped to the ground like a rock.

"Get him off this ship."


	7. An Old Man in an Ice Cave

**A/N: Sorry for the long wait. Yay Spock Prime! *dies of spazz attack* Sorry Quinto, but Nimoy is just like fine wine; the older he gets the sexier he gets. Please Review!**

**-Chapter 6-**

Whenever Kirk came back to consciousness, he realized that he was definitely_ not_ on the _Enterprise_.

He groaned as he felt the pain in his head and shoulder. He glanced around and realized he was in an escape pod. He stiffly reached over and clicked a button on the small monitor and he grunted out a command. "Computer, where I am?"

"_Location, Delta Vega._ _Class-M planet. Unsafe_. _There is a Starfleet outpost fourteen kilometers to the northwest. Remain in your_ _pod until retrieved by Starfleet authorities."_

Kirk unraveled the wrappings around his left hand and tossed it back as the computer spoke. "You gotta be kidding me," he muttered.

He gathered the survival tools that were only an arm's reach away and packed them all tightly into a bag beside his chair. He popped open the hatch to the pod and kicked it out, only to be met with a blast of cold wind.

_'Wonderful,'_ he thought. _'Just where the damn Vulcan would choose to put me.'_

An alarm started going off as he opened the door, but he ignored it and clambered out of the pod. He crouched on the rim of the hatch and grabbed the strap to the bag before starting to climb up the crater that had formed around the pod when it had landed.

When he climbed up to the top, he pulled himself up onto the snow-covered edge. He shuffled to his feet and tossed the bag away. His eyes widened as he only saw before him a white landscape.

_'Shit.'_

After a while of walking in the general direction of the Starfleet outpost, the sky darkened and the wind howled eerily. With a more-than-annoyed tone he whipped out his communicator, which he knew would be useless to contact anyone in this storm, and opened up the personal log channel.

"Stardate 2258.42. Or 44. Whatever. Acting Captain Spock has marooned me on Delta Vega, in what I believe to be a violation of Security Protocol 49.09., governing the treatment of prisoners aboard a star…"

He trailed off when he heard an even eerier sound than the wind. He turned and squinted in the snow, seeing a dark splotch against the white of the surrounding land. The figure drew closer and his eyes widened when he saw it: it looked like a cross between a wolf, a lizard, and a baboon. The creature let out a roar when it made eye-contact and Kirk let out a yelp of surprise.

Kirk started running away from the creature, blindly sprinting through the snow. Just as the creature was about to lunge, the ice behind the fleeing man burst open to reveal a giant bug-like creature almost two times the size of the first. The new creature grabbed the first and threw it away against an ice outcrop, either killing it or sending it to unconsciousness. Kirk did not care.

The blue-eyed man scrambled to his feet and he tried backing away from the creature. It turned and roared at him, sending saliva everywhere. Kirk's instinctive drives kicked in and he started running away with newfound speed, adrenaline pumping through his veins. He concluded that the creature was much too fast for its size.

Kirk glanced behind him to see how close the creature was to him, but he ended up being flung forward due to the ground breaking away downward in a _very_ steep decline. Kirk rolled downward and tried pulling up his arms up to shield his face from the bits of hard ice littering the ground. The creature growled at the top of the cliff, seemingly trying to decide whether more prey was worth its time.

Its primitive thoughts were short-lived, however, as the ice beneath its feet broke away and it started to fall as well. Kirk landed on a slab of ice and the creature crumpled to the ground in a jumble of limbs. Kirk hardly recognized that he was on his feet again, running away from the pursuing creature towards what looked like a cave in the cliff only a few yards away.

He sprinted through the entrance, thinking that the small hole would stop the animal in its pursuit, but it didn't. The ice flew past him and the fleeing man's leg was caught by was felt like a steel wire, although he knew such a thing would not be in an animal. He was dragged to the ground and he turned himself over, horridly looking down the mouth of the creature that had a tight grip on his ankle with its tongue.

Just as the thing was about to swallow him whole, a bright orange light shone in the corner of Kirk's eye. The creature fled from the foreign thing, trampling out of the cave and forgetting its prey. Kirk gazed up at the figure, who stood in the entrance staring into the snow as if deciding whether or not the creature would come back. Kirk's labored breaths filled the cave as he tried to calm his frayed nerves from nearly being eaten. Twice.

Before Kirk could say anything, however, the figure turned and Kirk's eyes focused on the image of an elderly Vulcan. The Vulcan stared at him for a split-second before a flash of recognition overcame his eyes.

"James T. Kirk." His tone was surprisingly soft and gentle, and Kirk grew even more confused.

"Excuse me?"

"How did you find me?" inquired the Vulcan almost bewilderedly.

Kirk scrambled to his feet, "Whoa, whoa; How do you know my name?" he asked, confusion turning to suspiciousness.

"I have been, and always shall be, your friend," said the Vulcan, as if that would trigger something in Kirk's mind. Kirk let out a breathy and incredulous chuckle at that. A Vulcan he'd never met before was claiming to be his friend?

"Ha, ha…look, I don't know you," he said shaking his head.

The Vulcan man almost looked desperate now. Almost. "I am Spock."

Kirk hesitated and observed the elderly male. He could say anything; inquire how this old man was Spock, when he got there, how he got there for that matter- but no. James Kirk was not one for pleasantries.

"Bullshit."

* * *

"It is remarkable pleasing to see you again, old friend," stated Spock while prodding the wood with a stick. "Especially after the events of today."

From crouching in front of the fire, Kirk stood stiffly and held out his hands apologetically. "Sir, I appreciate what you did for me today, but if you were Spock, you'd know we're not friends. At all. You hate me; you marooned me here for mutiny."

"Mutiny?" asked the elder Vulcan, seemingly surprised.

"Yes."

"You are not the Captain?" he inquired further.

"No, no, you're the Captain. Pike was taken hostage," Kirk informed him shaking his head, walking towards the exit of the small alcove. Whoever this man was, he was certainly _not_ Spock.

"By Nero."

Kirk stopped in his tracks and turned to look at the man who claimed to be the Vulcan he despised as of now, dubiousness turning into confusion. "What do you know about him?"

Normally Kirk would think that a Vulcan would simply say what they knew about a person flatly, but this man had more surprises up his sleeve. With an almost sarcastic rising of his eyebrows, the Vulcan elder supplied, "He is a particularly troubled Romulan."

Kirk didn't know if he was trying to be funny or not.

Spock stood and walked towards Kirk, holding out his hand and tried to place it on his face. "Please, allow me; it will be easier," said he, but Kirk took a step back. He had yet to trust this newly discovered person, even if he had saved his life. "Whoa, whoa- what are you doing?"

"Our minds: one and together." The man's eyes were exactly like that of the Spock Kirk knew; a shining chocolate brown that displayed emotions where his face couldn't.

Kirk grudgingly let him place his fingers on his face and immediately felt a strange, tingly feeling. "One hundred and twenty-nine years from now, a star will explode and threaten to destroy the galaxy." Without any feeling of his body, Kirk was suddenly pulled into a flash of different memories that were not his own. Spock's voice echoed ominously as he spoke.

_"That is where I'm from, Jim; the future. A star went supernova, consuming everything in its path. I promised the Romulans that I would save their planet. We outfitted our fastest ship. Using Red Matter, I would create a black hole which would absorb the exploding star._

_"I was en route, when the unthinkable happened. The supernova destroyed Romulus. I had little time. I had to extract the red matter and shoot it into the supernova. As I began my return trip, I was intercepted. He called himself Nero, last of the Romulan Empire. In my attempt to escape, both of us were pulled into the black hole. Nero went through first. He was the first to arrive._

_"Nero and his crew spent the next twenty-five years awaiting my arrival. But what was years for Nero, was only seconds for me. I went through the black hole. Nero was waiting for me. He held me responsible for the loss of his world. He captured my vessel, and spared my life, for one reason. So that I would know his pain._

_"He beamed me here so that I could observe his vengeance. As he was helpless to save his planet, I was helpless to save mine. Billions of lives lost, because of me, Jim. Because I failed."_

The meld was broken, the contact was separated, and Kirk gasped a much needed breath. Emotions went on rampage inside of him, not being able to distinguished from his or the man's before him.

"Forgive me, emotional transference is an effect of the mind-meld," the elder Spock bowed his head slightly. Kirk stumbled away from Spock, trying to get his bearings. He let out a pathetic grunt and tried to calm his heavy breathing.

"So you do feel?" he said just above a whisper.

"Yes."

"Going back in time, you changed all our lives," Kirk summarized quietly.

"Jim, we must go." Spock moved past the dazed human. "There is a Starfleet outpost not far from here."

"Wait."

Spock turned and looked to him expectantly. Kirk wondered for a moment on what to ask of the elder Vulcan; he could ask anything, anything at all…

"Where you came from…did I know my father?" Kirk asked, a small flame of hope flaring in his eyes.

Spock paused a second before replying. "Yes. You often spoke of him as being your inspiration for joining Starfleet. He proudly lived to see you become Captain of the _Enterprise_."

"Captain?" Kirk's face was amazed, and almost dream-like. He had known his father. He could have known, if not for the universal shifting.

"A ship we must return you to as soon as possible," Spock affirmed. He turned and started towards the entrance of the tunnel, with Kirk hesitantly following after staring into the fire.

* * *

"Warp 3, sir," Sulu informed the Vulcan Acting Captain, glancing over his shoulder at him.

"Course 1-5-1, mark 3, Laurentian System, sor," Chekov added as well.

"Thank you gentlemen," Spock acknowledged. At the sound of a gravelly voice, Spock turned his head.

"You wanted to see me?"

"Yes, Doctor," affirmed Spock, rising from his chair and walking over to McCoy. Sky glanced back at the duo from her residence at the Science Station and straightened her posture slightly, deciding to listen in on the conversation as they circled the bridge.

"I am aware that James Kirk is a friend of yours," Spock stated with a slight nod of his head. "I recognize that supporting me as you did must have been difficult."

"Is that a thank you?" McCoy gruffly asked.

"I am simply acknowledging your difficulties," Spock corrected.

"Permission to speak freely, sir."

Spock turned fully to him, eyebrows reaching for the ceiling slightly. "I welcome it."

McCoy sardonically raised his brows. "Do you? Okay then." He glanced around the bridge before exclaiming, "Are you out of your Vulcan mind?"

At Spock's furrowing of his eyebrows, McCoy continued. "Are you making a logical choice, sending Kirk away? Probably. But the right one? You know, back home we got a saying, 'If you're gonna ride in the Kentucky Derby, you don't leave your prize stallion in the stable.'"

"A curious metaphor, Doctor, seeing as a stallion must first be broken before it can reach it potential," Spock informed him with a slight upturn of his lips.

"My God, man: you could at least act like it was a hard decision!" McCoy exclaimed.

"I intend to assist in the effort to reestablish communication with Starfleet. However if crew morale is better served by my roaming the halls weeping, I will gladly defer to your medical expertise." The turbolift doors opened and revealed a red-shirted Lieutenant and the familiar stature of Ambassador Sarek. "Excuse me."

Spock walked over to his father, greeting him as warmly as a Vulcan could to another. He started showing him around the Bridge and the people who worked there, as well as the functions each member performed. Sky heard Spock's rich baritone requesting attention from behind her.

"Father, this is Lieutenant Sky Lorion, Chief Science Officer in my place as I am now Acting Captain," Spock informed the Vulcan Ambassador.

Sky turned and stood, nodding her head respectfully. "Hello, Ambassador. I don't believe I know your name," she stated formally.

Sarek nodded his head slightly in return. "Greetings, Lieutenant. I am Sarek." he replied.

"Lieutenant Lorion is one of my most distinguished graduates," continued Spock. "She is also a graduate of Biology and Biochemistry along with my Computer Physics class."

Sky felt a slight blush crawl across her cheeks as Spock praised her and she reached up to scratch the back of her neck nervously. She had no idea how to respond to that. Sky knew that Vulcans did not accept thanks, but she didn't want to sound like a stuck-up brat either. "I accept your praise wholly, Captain," she said after a moment. Spock nodded and continued on his tour of the bridge.

Sky let out a relieved breath and sat back down in her seat tiredly. She continued looking over damage and repair reports but had a lingering thought in the back of her mind. Spock had never praised her before; why would he do so now? Especially in front of his father?


	8. Emotionally Compromise You?

**A/N: Yay Scotty! I loved writing this chapter, even if it took so long. Please Review!**

**-Chapter 7-**

Kirk followed Spock through the blizzard, both of them having pulled their hoods over their faces. He had been thinking about the mind-meld that the elder Vulcan had performed upon him, and he couldn't make any sense of something that he'd seen. He remembered the glimpse of someone he'd seen before in his own reality, but he couldn't quite match the face with the memory.

Kirk sighed and shook his head slightly. '_Forgive me, emotional transference is an effect of the mind-meld_,' Spock had stated. The problem was that Kirk didn't know what emotion connected to that face. He was _absolutely sure_ knew the person from _somewhere_.

Spock halted his long strides when they both reached the top of a hill; they saw the Starfleet outpost settled in snow-capped valley. Kirk had heard (with what little information was available about them) that Vulcans couldn't stay out in the cold too long otherwise they'd get hypothermia. He briefly wondered if the Vulcan beside him was as numb-faced as he was, but the placid expression that he'd worn his whole life hid any possible weakness that he could've had.

But then his thoughts snapped to a halt. The face he'd seen in one of Spocks memories…no, that was ridiculous. Vulcans weren't supposed to-

His train of thought was cut off when he realized that they'd reached the entrance of the compound. With the half-Vulcan's help, he managed to open the door; they entered and Kirk dragged it shut again. '_When did doors become so damn heavy_?' he wondered. He let out a grunt and leaned briefly against the cold metal before standing upright and turning to face the darkened hall. They heard a small voice as well as the humming of machines; probably heating systems, although even in the compound it was not t-shirt and basketball shorts weather.

"Hello!" Kirk called, echoes bouncing off the walls.

A figure appeared at the end of the hall and came running forward. Kirk found himself staring down at a Roylan male dressed in an oversized shirt, loose black slacks, and leather worker's apron. The Roylan lifted his darkened goggles and placed them on his head; his eyes reminded Kirk like that of the twenty-first century candy called Tic-Tacs. He looked at both of the new visitors warily (or at least Kirk figured, seeing as he couldn't decipher even the slightest facial expression from the alien), and gestured for them to follow.

He led them down the hall and Kirk exchanged a glance with Spock, not knowing whether they could completely trust the engineer or not. They emerged into the main room and Kirk adjusted his hood nervously.

They came up to a set of control panels and they saw a man asleep in a chair with his feet on the desk. The Roylan hit his leg and the man grunted. "Wot?" He whipped the work rag from his eyes before settling his gaze on the two new arrivals.

"You realize 'ow unacceptable this is?"

Spock's brow furrowed ever-so-slightly. "Fascinating."

Kirk looked at him. "What?"

"Okay, I'm sure you're just doin' your job, but could you not 'ave come a wee bit sooner?" asked the Scotsman incredulously. "Six months I've been here, livin' off Starfleet protein nibs in the promise of a good meal! An' I know exacly wot's goin' on here, okay? Punishment, isn't it? Ongoing. For somethin' that was clearly an accident."

"You are Montgomery Scott," stated the elder Vulcan in realization.

Kirk furrowed his brows. "You _know_ him?"

"Aye, tha's me. You're in the right place. Unless there's another hardworkin', equally starved Starflee' Officer around," answered the engineer.

"Me."

"Get aff! Shut up!" Scott looked to the Roylan. "You don't ea' anythin'! You can ea', like, a bean, and you're done. I'm talkin' about food- real food. But you're here now, so thank you. Where is it?" The engineer stood and walked over to another desk and seated himself down.

"You are in fact the Mr. Scott who postulated the theory of transwarp beaming," further assumed Spock.

Scott looked up at him. "Tha's wot I'm talkin' about. How do ya think I wound up here? I 'ad a little debate with my instructor on the issue of relativistic physics and 'ow it pertains to subspace travel. He seemed to think tha' the range of transporting something like a- like a grapefruit was limited to about a hundred miles.

"I told him that I could not only beam a grapefruit from one planet to the adjacent planet in the same system- which is easy, by the way- I could do it with a life-form. So, I tested it on Admiral Archer's prize beagle."

"Wha- I know that dog, what happened to it?" Kirk cut in, his brows furrowing even more.

The Scotsman reached over and grabbed a mug and took a gulp of whatever beverage was contained in it. "I'll tell ya when it reappears." Scott cleared his throat, "I don't know- feel guilty abou' tha'."

"What if I told you that your transwarp theory was correct, that it is indeed possible to beam onto a ship that is traveling at warp speed?"

"I think if that equation had been discovered, I'd 'av heard abou' it," he replied.

Spock's upper lip upturned almost undetectably. "The reason you haven't heard of it, Mr. Scott, is because you haven't discovered it yet."

Scott blinked and shook his head in shock before he stood. "Are you from the future?"

"Yeah, he is. I'm not," answered Kirk, glancing at the Vulcan beside him pointedly.

"Well, tha's brilliant," he stated. "Do they still 'ave sandwiches there?"

* * *

"Well, she's a wee bit dodgy. Shield emi'ers are totally banjaxed, as well as a few other things," Scott stated, tapping the outer hull of the shuttlecraft with his hammer before waving it at Kirk. "On youse go."

Kirk nodded at the information and they started around to the side of the craft to the hatch. "So, the _Enterprise_ has had its maiden voyage, has it? She is one well-endowed lady. I'd like to get my hands on her ample nacelles; if you'll pardon the engineering parlance," the engineer continued. He threw the hammer away as the three entered: Spock was sitting at the control console, typing in equations when they entered.

Scott walked over and sat down in the chair beside the console, but Spock paid him no head. "Except- the thing is- even if I believed you- right- where you're from, what I've done- which I don't, by the way-" he stood and walked a few paces away, "you're still talkin' about beamin' aboard the Enterprise while she's traveling faster than light without a proper receiving pad."

He looked up at Keenser (they'd discovered his name from Scott), who was sitting on one of the handle bars. "Get off there! It's not a climbin' frame!"

"The notion of transwarp beaming is like tryin' to hit a bullet, with a smaller bullet, whilst wearing a blindfold, riding a horse." Scotty was at Spock's side again after circling the small craft and checking system functions. "Wha's tha'?"

"Your equation for achieving transwarp beaming," answered Spock. The Vulcan stood while the Scotsman muttered, "Get out of it," he muttered. But then he gaped at the mathematical equation plastered on the screen. "Imagine that! It never occurred to me to think of space as the thing that was moving."

"You're coming with us, right?" Kirk inquired softly, standing behind Spock who was typing a few supporting equations on another console. He turned and stared at the young man straight in the eye. "No, Jim. That is not my destiny," he replied quietly.

"Your des- he- the other Spock is not gonna believe me. Only you can explain that the hell's happened…"

"Under _no_ circumstances can he be made aware of my existence," Spock told him, almost in a scolding manner. "You must promise me this."

"You're telling me I can't tell you that I'm following your own orders?" asked Kirk incredulously. "Why not? What happens?"

"Jim, this is one rule you cannot break. To stop Nero, you _alone_ must take command of your ship."

"How? Over your dead body?"

"Preferably not." He had an almost an amused look in his eyes, but it disappeared before Kirk could be sure. "However, there is Starfleet Regulation 619. 619 states that any command officer who's emotionally compromised by the mission at hand must resign said command."

Kirk furrowed his brows and scrunched his face. "So, you're saying I have to emotionally compromise you guys," he assumed dubiously.

"Jim, I just lost my planet." Spock's voice was soft, and almost vulnerable. His face was relaxed from its normal impassiveness and showed his hurt and heartache. And his eyes. His eyes were open pools of emotion, like a clear body of water that had been disturbed from its peacefulness. "I can tell you, I _am_ emotionally compromised. What you must do is get me to show it."

Kirk hesitated a moment before continuing in a hushed voice to the point that Scott couldn't hear. "Back there, in the cave when you mind-melded with me, I...I saw a flash of something. Something that's been giving me a fit since we got here.

"I think I saw someone I've seen before, but I couldn't be sure. When you were getting on your ship to hit the supernova, there was someone there. A woman. She…she had short light brown hair and blue eyes?"

Spock's unguarded eyes betrayed his feelings of loneliness. "Yes, I…I knew her."

Kirk tilted his head slightly. "She looked like Sk-"

"Aye, then, laddie. Live or die. Let's get this over with," cut in Scott, standing on the small transporter pad. He pushed Keenser away from standing beside him. "No, go. You cannae come with me. Go on."

Kirk stood on the one to Scott's left and he leaned over and rested his hands on the side rail. "You know, coming back in time, changing history, that's cheating." His eyes met Spock's and the emotions were rampaging, still unleashed.

The Vulcan nodded slightly. "A trick I learned from an old friend." He initiated the transporter machines and they started humming. Spock raised his hand in a Vulcan Salute and almost smiled at Kirk. Almost. "Live long and prosper."

Just as the small lights started whirling around the two men, Kirk realized something. That hurt, that loneliness, only could add up to one thing.

Love.

* * *

Kirk rematerialized in the engine room in the bowels of the _Enterprise_, specifically the section where water was filtered and distributed about the ship. He smiled smugly, now coming to the conclusion that Vulcans- more specifically_ Spock_, of all people- _did _feel emotion. Even love.

But when he glanced around, there was no sign of Mr. Scott. "Mr. Scott!" he called. An answering banging in the tank behind him answered his call. He pressed his ear against the warm metal. "Mr. Scott, can you hear me?"

Suddenly the machines started and water started flowing from the tank into the pipes, revealing a very pale-looking Scotsman. Kirk pressed his hands on the pipe and started panicking. "Uh, hold on a second!" The water was blasted off, this pushing Scott with it and Kirk muttered, "Oh, no."

He sprinted alongside the pipes, going this way and that. At some point he lost his coat but he didn't care. He came into a larger room, thus revealing a giant tank. A tank with very, _very _sharp turbines. The tank that Scott was going to be pulled into pretty soon.

'Shit, shit, shit.'

Kirk's eyes landed on the emergency hatch directly in front of the tank and he ran over to a control panel, typing in the necessary commands to open the hatch. "_Turbine release valve activated_," the computer voiced.

Just as Scott was about to go through, the valve opened thus releasing the soaked engineer, with water raining down on him. Kirk crouched next to him and shook his shoulders. "You all right?"

Scott sat up and spat up the water from his stomach, gasping for breath. "My head's buzzin' and I'm soaked, but otherwise I'm fine," he replied with a slight snap in his words. He'd whole-heartedly believed he would've been beamed aboard the _Enterprise dry_ and _warm_.

* * *

"Keptin Spock! Detecting unauthorized access to Water Turbine Control Board," Chekov stated reading the information from his monitor, to which Spock stepped forward. "Bring up the video," he ordered. Sky looked over her shoulder at him and tilted her head. Unauthorized access to a Water Turbine? Why would someone need access to a Water Turbine?

The image of two men appeared on the main viewing screen and Spock leaned over a control panel, clicking the communication to the Security Station. "Security, seal the Engineering Deck. We have intruders in Turbine Section 3."

With a slight narrowing of his eyes- almost unnoticeable, he added, "Set phasers to stun."

* * *

Kirk sprinted through the Engineering Deck, Scott following him dutifully even in his weakened state. The real reason he did not dare slow down was that he sure as hell was not going to get thrown in the Brig. Their luck in not being caught was short-lived, however.

"Halt!"

"No, no!" Kirk muttered. But it was too late: they were caught between three Security Officers, each with a phaser trained on either man. "Come with me, Cupcake!" the leader of the three snapped, none too amused.


	9. Foundations of Friendship

**A/N:**** So, how are my favorite little readers? I absolutely loved writing this chapter, because it lays down a firm foundation for Sky and Spock's friendship. I plan on keeping them friends for a while, but I shall not say when they get together. Please Review!**

**Translation(s): Tushah nash-veh k'odu- I grieve with thee.**

**-Chapter 8-**

It wasn't even five minutes after Spock gave the order to Security when the turbolift doors opened and Kirk, accompanied by a man Sky did not know, were dragged inside by the Security Officers. She stood and walked beside Spock warily, not knowing how the _hell_ the two men got onboard while the ship was going in warp speed. Kirk's eyes settled on the two of them for a second a flash of amusement and smugness was there, but it was gone before anyone else could notice.

"Who are you?" inquired Spock to the stranger, authority wringing in his voice. The two intruders spoke at the same time.

"I'm with him."

"He's with me."

"We are traveling at warp speed," Spock stated. "How did you manage to beam aboard this ship?"

Kirk said with a hint of sarcasm, "You're the genius, you figure it out."

Spock narrowed his eyes slightly. "As Acting Captain of this vessel, I order you to answer the question."

Kirk's amusement was gone with a flash. "Well, I'm not telling, _Acting Captain_," he replied.

After a second, Kirk furrowed his brows slightly in confusion. "What- di- That doesn't frustrate you, does it? My lack of cooperation?" Kirk asked. "That doesn't make you angry."

"Just answer him," Sky muttered. "You're in enough trouble as it is."

Spock turned his attention to the other intruder. "Are you a member of Starfleet?" he inquired.

"I, um, yes. Can I ge' a towel, please?" the man stuttered.

"Under penalty of court martial, I order you to explain to me how you were able to beam aboard this ship while moving at warp," Spock commanded.

"Well…"

"Don't answer him."

"You _will_ answer me."

Sky glanced at the Vulcan beside her, to the men in front of her, and repeated. The tension was practically to the point where you could swim in it. The Scotsman hesitated before breaking the silence.

"I'd rather no' take sides."

"What is it with you, Spock?" queried Kirk, stepping closer to him. "Hm? Your planet was just destroyed, your mother murdered, and you're not even upset."

"If you are presuming that these experiences in any way impede my ability to command this ship, you are mistaken." Spock's voice was dangerously low. He wasn't going to be able to hold his emotions back much longer, Sky knew.

"And yet, you are the one who said fear was necessary for command. I mean, did you see his ship? Did you see what he did?"

"Yes, of course I did."

"So are you afraid or aren't you?"

Sky looked at Spock, face softening. Kirk, whatever his motives where, was going too far.

"I will not allow you to lecture me about the merits of emotion," he stated almost bitterly.

"Then why don't you stop me?"

"_Step away_ from me,Mr. Kirk."

"What is it like not to feel anger? Or heartbreak? Or the need to stop at _nothing_ to _avenge the death_ of the woman who gave _birth_ to you?"

"Back away from me."

"You feel nothing!" Kirk shouted. "It must not even_ compute_ for you. You _never _loved her!"

In a flash, Spock let out a yell and punched Kirk, sending him whirling. He landed against the Security Officer but Spock grabbed his shirt and threw him against the Captain's Chair. Kirk tried to block his punches but Spock was too strong- too fast for him to defend himself. Sky's eyes widened in horror but she couldn't do anything. She was frozen in her place.

Spock raised his arm and slammed his fist into Kirk's shoulder, sending a sickening thud to everyone's ears. He continued to slam his fists into his tormentor, blind rage seeping into every inch of his being. Sky found that she able to move again when Spock pinned Kirk against a console, clutching the man's throat in a death-grip. Kirk let out desperate but strangled sounds, staring into the seething hatred that filled the Vulcan's eyes.

"Spock!" she cried, warily stepping towards him. When he didn't release his grip she reached forward with her hand and touched his shoulder. Spock's head whirled around at her in a whiplash and she was met with a searing pain in her jaw. She collapsed on the floor clutching her mouth and gazing up at her superior in fear.

"Spock!"

Spock froze and slowly released his grip on Kirk's throat, allowing him to choke for air. The Vulcan gazed into nothingness in horror at what he'd just done; his breaths were slightly ragged from the emotional and physical exertion. His eyes locked with Sarek's and he looked down at the floor before walking towards the turbolift.

He paused beside McCoy but didn't meet his eyes. "Doctor, I am no longer fit for duty. I hereby relinquish my command, based on the fact that I have been…emotionally compromised. Please note the time and date in the ship's log."

Glancing back at the woman who was still lying on the floor, he swallowed thickly before turning on his heel and exiting the bridge. Sky was up in a flash, ignoring the pounding pain in her jaw. She sent a plant-wilting glare at Kirk before following Spock off the bridge. Sarek looked around the shocked room before leaving as well.

* * *

Sky followed Spock down the corridor, ignoring the stares- both human and Vulcan- that were cast her way. She did not detect Sarek also pursuing the emotionally compromised half-Vulcan, although he kept well behind, observing the two from a distance.

Sky figured that she knew where Spock was headed and continued to trail behind him. When Spock entered the turbolift Sky entered quietly behind him. The doors closed, leaving silence but not any awkwardness. Sky didn't want to make him uncomfortable by stopping the turbolift, so she just stood there.

"Cap- Commander, I know that Vulcans do not accept sympathy, and I know that it wouldn't help either, but…" She swallowed quietly before stating, "Tushah nash-veh k'odu."

Spock finally met her eyes and a slight twinge of confusion entered those flawless brown orbs. "You… you speak our language?"

Sky blushed slightly and fingered the end of her dress. "Uh, yeah. I taught myself to speak it when I was nine."

Spock nodded slightly and dropped his eyes back to the floor. Sky sighed and hesitantly laid a hand on his shoulder, feeling him stiffen underneath his shirt at the contact. "Spock, I know you didn't mean to hurt me. And it was my fault in the first place."

The half-Vulcan met her eyes again, tilting his head almost undetectably. After a moment she decided to come clean. "Back on Vulcan…Amanda was in front of me…it was completely and utterly my fault in not rescuing her. And…I'm sorry for my failure," she trailed off at the end, staring into his eyes guiltily and seeking forgiveness.

Spock shook his head slightly. "The fault is not yours, Lieutenant, nor is it anyone else's aboard this vessel. The fault lies within Nero and Nero alone. You must not blame yourself for this fact," he told her quietly.

Sky's face softened exponentially and she bit her lip, nodding her head and looking down at the floor. She removed her hand when the turbolift doors opened and Spock paused in the entryway. "I would recommend you seek medical examination for your jaw," he said quietly. Sky nodded and he disappeared around the corner.

Right after he was out of Sky's line of sight, the speakers buzzed to life with Kirk's voice.

"_Attention, crew of the Enterprise. This is James Kirk. Mr. Spock has resigned commission and advanced me to Acting Captain. I know you were all expecting to regroup with the 'fleet, but I'm ordering a pursuit course of the enemy ship to Earth. I want all departments at battle stations and ready in ten minutes. Either we're going down or they are. Kirk out."_

Sky stared up at the speaker in the top of the turbolift and immediately punched in the bridge level. She was going to give James Kirk a piece of her mind.

* * *

"Kirk, what the hell do you think you're doing?!" Sky's angered voice reached Kirk's ears and he internally groaned. First Spock, then McCoy, then Uhura, now Sky.

_Wonderful._

"Do you realize what you're trying to do? You must either have a death wish or you're insane because I don't know how the hell you think we'll be able to defeat the Narada!" Sky snapped, coming up to the Captain's Chair where the blue-eyed man sat solitarily.

"Lieutenant, I think you're stepping out of line," he said warningly. The anger and utter hatred scared him; he half expected her to lash out at him like Spock did.

"_'__Out of line?'_ My god! You just made Spock _demote_ himself because you _emotionally compromised_ him, and you're saying _I'm_ out of line?"

"Lieutenant, I feel guilty about what I had to do, but I assure you that it needed to be done," Kirk said quietly. Sky was about to bite out something else but hesitated, thinking about his words. A look of confusion entered her eyes, replacing the anger. "What do you mean, 'it had to be done?'"

Kirk swallowed quietly and glanced around the bridge. Luckily they had turned back to their stations and weren't listening. "There's a reason I managed to get back here, but I can't say any more than that," he said almost in a whisper.

Sky's brows furrowed and she shook her head, muttering things to herself.

* * *

"Whatever the case, we need to get aboard Nero's ship undetected."

"We can't just go in there guns blazing, Jim; not with their technology," stated Doctor McCoy, who had taken residence beside Sky a moment after her little steam session. "I'm telling you, the math doesn't support what you're suggesting."

"He's right, Captain," agreed Sky, now with a level head. "We can't possibly get around them without them detecting us, or we can't just try to sneak in close to them; their shields are like none that I've ever seen before- nor their weapons."

"Keptin Kork, Keptin Kork!" Chekov exclaimed tapping Kirk on the shoulder excitedly.

"Yes, Mr. Chekov," Kirk acknowledged, turning his full attention to the Navigator. "What is it?"

"Based on ze Narada's course from Wulcan, I hafe projected zat Nero will trawel past Saturn," he stated with a proud smile. "Like you said, ve need to stay inwisible to Nero or he'll destroy us.

"If Mr. Scott can get us to Varp Factor 4, and if ve drop out of varp behind one of Saturn's moons, say…Titan, ze magnetic distortion from ze planet's rings will make us inwisible to Nero's sensors. From zere, as long as the drill is not actuated, ve can beam aboard ze enemy ship."

"Aye, tha' might work," confirmed Scott (in which Sky had learned his name from Kirk) who was cleaning out his ear with the towel an ensign had given him while changing into an engineer's uniform.

"I can confirm that," added Sky, counting up the math in her head.

"Wait a minute, kid. How old are you?" inquired McCoy dubiously.

"Sewenteen, sir."

"Oh- oh, good. He's seventeen," said the Doctor incredulously.

"Doctor."

All eyes turned to the half-Vulcan who now stood a few paces from the entryway of the turbolift. "Mr. Chekov is correct. I can confirm that telemetry." He walked toward the small group of people gathered around the main Piloting and Navigational control board, continuing, "If Mr. Sulu is able to maneuver us into position, I can beam aboard Nero's ship, steal back the black hole device and, if possible, bring back Captain Pike."

"I won't allow you to do that, Mr. Spock," Kirk said shaking his head once.

Spock's lips upturned slightly. "Romulans and Vulcans share a common ancestry. Our cultural similarities will make it easier for me to access the ship's computer to locate the device." Spock hesitated before continuing. "Also, my mother was human, which makes Earth the only home I have left."

Sky felt a pang go through her heart at this, even if she already knew. She knew it must have been hard to admit that out loud.

Kirk swallowed shallowly before meeting the half-Vulcan's gaze. "Then I'm coming with you."

"Me too," added Sky, stepping in between the two. "Someone's gotta make sure you don't kill each other before the Romulans do."

"I would cite Regulation, but I know you will simply ignore it," Spock stated.

Kirk chuckled. "See? We are getting to know each other." He reached up and gave Spock a slap on the shoulder, to which the half-Vulcan furrowed his brows and looked after him confusedly. He then looked to Sky, seeking an answer to his unvoiced question.

"It's a Terran guy thing," she told him before following Kirk. '_This'll be interesting_,' she thought.


	10. Nero, Face-to-Face

**A/N:****Hey, guys. Here's the next chapter (obviously). Please Review!**

**-Chapter 9-**

"All stop in three, two, one."

The _Enterprise_ halted mid-stride in the gaseous moon of Saturn by the name of Titan; the main viewing screen showed the bright reds and oranges of the particles that were held together by the gravitational force of the moon.

"Give me one-quarter impulse burst for five seconds," Sulu ordered to Chekov. "I'll do the rest with thrusters. On my mark."

The Russian nodded. "Aye."

"Fire."

The _Enterprise_'s impulse thrusters leapt to life, sending bursts of energy out and maneuvering the starship into the right position. The engines hummed and the _Enterprise_ lifted ominously from the gases, giving free view of the space before them again.

"Transporter Room: we are in position above Titan," the helmsman informed through the communication unit at his station.

* * *

Scott, who insisted that Sky call him Scotty, was typing away at the controls of the transporter preparing for the initiation of the machine. "Really? Fine job, Mr. Sulu. Well done."

Sky bit her lip and glanced over his equations, checking them over. She was nervous, to say the least. A part of her feared that she wouldn't come back. Spock, Kirk, and Uhura entered the room exactly after he finished the statement. "How are we, Scotty?" Kirk asked while Spock took his place on the transporter. Out of the corner of Sky's eye, Uhura started talking to him.

"Unbeliebably, sir, the ship is in position," answered the Scott.

Kirk leaned over the control panel and replied to the helmsman through the comm unit. "Whatever happens, Mr. Sulu, if you think you have the tactical advantage, you fire on that ship, even if we're still onboard. That's an order."

"_Yes, sir_."

"Otherwise we'll contact the _Enterprise_ when we're ready to be beamed back," he added.

"_Good luck_," said Sulu before closing the link.

Kirk nodded at Sky to follow him and they both turned towards the transporter, only to find Spock and Uhura kissing. Sky's eyes widened slightly and her eyebrows rose towards the ceiling. '_When did_ that _happen_?' she thought.

Sky stood on the pad behind Kirk and he glanced over at the half-Vulcan, only now noticing the close proximity of the two Officers. His brows furrowed and he stared off into nothingness, wondering the same thing Sky was.

Well- not the _exact_ same thing. He was wondering how Spock managed to snag Uhura before he did. Sky shifted slightly and held her hands behind her back, playing with the ring on her right index finger.

"I will be back," she heard Spock murmur to Uhura.

"You better be," she replied, equally quiet. "I'll be monitoring your frequency."

"Thank you, Nyota."

Kirk's eyebrows furrowed even more and he exchanged a bewildered glance with Sky. And mouthed, 'He knows her name?' Sky shrugged in response, not even glancing at the couple.

Spock and Uhura kissed one last time before she stepped off the transporter pad and standing beside Scotty, who bewilderedly glanced at the three on the transporter pad. The two men in front of Sky stayed silent. Silent until Kirk turned his head towards Spock.

"So her first name's Nyota?"

"I have no comment on the matter."

Sky restrained a snort.

"Okey-dokey then, if there's any common sense in the design of the enemy ship, I should be pu'in' you somewhere in the Cargo Bay," said Scotty. "Shouldn' be a soul in sight."

"Energize," Kirk ordered.

The machines hummed to life and the bright lights swirled around the three figures simultaneously. Although just when Sky's started vision started to change, April and Natasha sprinted into the room at top speed. Before she could do anything, however, Sky was beamed aboard the enemy ship with the two women's protestant yells in her ears.

* * *

As soon as the three materialized, they looked around warily. Approximately twenty sets of Romulan eyes were on them. In a split second, one of the Romulans yelled something in his native tongue.

The three Starfleet Officers snatched their phasers from their belts and started shooting while bolting for cover. Spock took out two of the enemies and Sky stood back-to-back with him firing as well. Her aim was impeccable and she took out three in two seconds.

Spock and Sky sprinted after Kirk dodging blasts and firing their own. They took cover behind a crate and fired at the advancing Romulans effectively taking most of them out. Sky caught a glimpse of a Romulan sneaking toward one of the control panels but it was too late.

"Captain, we have Starfleet Officers aboard the ship. One of them is Vulc-" His statement was cut off by a phaser-shot from Sky's weapon.

After all of the Romulans were taken out, Kirk hoarsely whispered to the other two. "I'll cover you."

Spock looked at him. "Are you certain?"

"Yeah, I got you."

Spock glanced at Sky, silently gesturing for her to follow, before making his way towards one of the fallen Romulans. He crouched beside him and placed his hand on the Romulan's face while Sky looked around at the entranceways, being cautious of any newcomers.

Suddenly she heard a phaser-shot and whirled around; Jim had his weapon trained on a fallen Romulan.

"I thought you were a Romulan," she told him, to which he shrugged.

"If I was a Romulan you'd be dead." The blonde glanced at Spock. "Do you know where it is?"

When Spock didn't answer, he continued. "The black hole device?"

Spock's eyes opened and he added, "And Captain Pike."

Spock stood again and the two humans followed him warily, glancing over their shoulders ever now and again. By the time they reached the hangar bay (or what Sky thought was the hangar bay) the two humans were panting heavily, while Spock was hardly having any difficulties in breathing.

He paused to gaze upon the small ship ahead of them before resuming his long strides. They stepped up the loading dock and the transparent-aluminum doors opened in greeting. The main body of the ship was circular and unfamiliar to either Sky or Spock.

"I foresee a complication," stated Spock, glancing around. "The design of this ship is far more advanced than I had anticipated."

"I don't recognize anything," Sky said in wonder. "Maybe it's a new type of ship that hasn't been talked about?"

"_Voice print and face recognition analysis enabled. Welcome back, Ambassador Spock and Admiral Lorion_."

All three looked up at the speaker before Kirk awkwardly glanced at them. "Wow, that's weird."

Spock's brows furrowed slightly. "Computer, what is your manufacturing origin?" he queried.

"_Stardate 2387. Commission by the Vulcan Science Academy_."

Sky raised an eyebrow at the new information and looked at the half-Vulcan. "Are you sure you haven't seen it before?"

"I am sure."

Spock entered the main control room and confronted Kirk with Sky tailing behind him. "It appears you have been keeping important information from us."

Kirk avoided his deduction. "You're gonna be able to fly this thing, right?"

"Something tells me I already have."

Kirk hesitated before turning and starting to exit the control room. "Good luck."

"Jim."

Kirk looked back at him surprised. He hadn't figured Spock would use his name, but looked at him expectantly anyway.

"The statistical likelihood that our plan will succeed is less than 4.3%," Spock informed him.

"It'll work."

Spock took a step forward, staring into Kirk's eyes. "In the event that I do not return, please tell Lieutenant Uhura…"

"Spock!" Kirk cut him off. "It'll work."

His assurances did not appease the growing knot of worry that was forming in Sky's stomach. She watched Kirk leave and bit her bottom lip nervously before looking into the half-Vulcan's warm, brown eyes. "There is a possibility that it won't work, but logic doesn't have to dictate your whole life," she said quietly. "Emotions aren't a bad thing. Just…keep that in mind."

She didn't let him reply when she exited the control deck, leaving a contemplative and slightly confused Spock behind.

* * *

The two humans sprinted from the craft, getting far enough away so that they didn't get burned to a crisp. Sky looked up at the window where Spock sat, checking over the systems.

'Good luck,' she thought before following Kirk to the location where Spock told them Pike was being held captive. They stepped cautiously in the water puddles, holding their phasers at the ready and looked around for signs of enemies.

They came into an ominously-lit room, and the growling of the foreign engines could be heard clearly. Suddenly Kirk caught sight of the one who'd destroyed countless lives. His phaser was up in a second, trained on the imposing figure of Nero. Sky was still in the shadows, so he did not spot her.

"Nero, order your men to disable the drill or I will-" Kirk's command was cut short by another Romulan hitting him in the face with the butt of his rifle. That same Romulan trained his weapon on the fallen Acting Captain, finger ready on the trigger.

Nero leaped from platform to platform towards Kirk and stood over him menacingly. "I know your face from Earth's history," he growled. He reached down and grabbed Kirk's shirt and threw him dangerously close to the edge. He grabbed him by the shoulder and started beating him relentlessly with Kirk releasing cries of pain.

Nero dropped him again and Kirk gasped for air. Nero grabbed him again but this time Kirk started fighting back but the Romulan's strength as too much for him to handle.

"James T. Kirk was considered to be a great man," he stated coldly, gripping Krik's throat and slowly choking him. "He went on to captain of the U.S.S. Enterprise. But that was another life. A life I will deprive you of, just like I did your father."

Suddenly a phaser-shot sounded and the other Romulan collapsed to the ground with his weapon skidding away. Sky stared at Nero, pure, seething hatred flaring in her icy-silver eyes. Nero stared at her and released his grip on Kirk who sputtered for breath.

"You…"

Sky fingered her grip on her phaser, keeping it trained at the Romulan's chest. Nero took a step forward, equal hatred starting to whirl in his eyes. Within a split second Sky's weapon was punched from her grasp and thrown a few feet away. A firm hand gripped her throat and pinned her against a nearby pillar.

"You aided in the destruction of my planet," he snarled. "Ambassador Spock's wife!" He spit the name out like an insult. Sky's eyes widened and she helplessly grasped at his hands, trying to make him release her. He did not.

"I would recognize your face anywhere," he growled tightening his grip on her throat. She let out a strangled cry of anguish to Kirk who was still lying dazed on the ground. "He left you on Terran; left you with your career and family and he destroyed my planet. But you aided him in the calculations, and for that you _will_ be sorry."

Just as she felt darkness start to claw at the corners of her eyes, a voice sounded over the intercom. "_Captain Nero, the Vulcan ship has been taken. The drill has been destroyed_."

Nero released Sky and she slid to the ground choking for air.

"SPOCK!" Nero snarled. "SPOCK!"

And with that, the Romulan leaped from the platform and disappeared from sight.


	11. Familiar Strangers

**A/N: I'm so sorry for the long wait! I'm not bothering with excuses; I'm sorry. This marks the second-to-last chapter of this story, which also means that the Epilogue is the next thing to be posted. Please Review!**

**-Chapter 10-**

The blackness that had been clawing at the edges of her vision was clearing and Sky sucked in deep breaths. The Romulan that she had stunned earlier stirred and grabbed his weapon, scrambling to his feet and training it on Kirk. Kirk himself was scrabbling on the ground trying to get his bearings. He looked up helplessly at the Romulan who ambled forward menacingly.

But before the Romulan could do anything to further harm the man, Kirk leaped towards Sky and grabbed her arm before pulling her to her feet. He sprinted forward and they both jumped over the edge of the platform. In midair, Kirk released Sky and they both flailed. Sky hit the lower platform with her feet and she rolled forward. Kirk was not so lucky.

He dangled off the edge and Sky ignored the growing pain behind her eyes, scrambling forward. She grabbed his free hand and attempted to pull him up. He was a lot heavier than he appeared to be. But before she could drag him onto safe ground, the other Romulan slammed his feet onto the ground and towered over Sky.

In a split-second decision that Sky hardly had time to recognize in her brain, she lunged out with her leg and knocked the Romulan's feet out from under him. She stood up and lifted her fists in a defensive position and he got to his feet. He smiled dangerously at her but she had the feeling that he wasn't too happy.

"I recognize you," he said lowly, smile sickeningly white against the gloomy, gigantic room. "Or at least, I recognize your face from your children."

'First I'm 'Ambassador Spock's wife',' Sky thought, not amused but not quite confused, either. 'Now I have children? Must have been a strange universe.'

"I encountered them at a peace conference once. T'Pala was quite attractive." He suddenly lunged forward and knocked Sky to the ground with a strength Sky had experienced only minutes before one the _Enterprise_. "But she will not be in this universe, for I will destroy you- slowly and painfully."

He grabbed her neck and lifted her upwards and Sky had another thought. 'How many times am I gonna be choked today?'

Kirk was still struggling to lift himself up. Sky felt her throat start to shrink under the pressure the Romulan was exerting onto it, and she choked out a sound that could have been words.

"Your species is even weaker than I expected," said the Romulan amusedly, eyes glinting darkly.

Sky tried again. "I can't…"

"You can't even speak."

Another choking sound resonated from Sky's throat and the Romulan's smiled widened in a mocking manner. "What?"

"I got your gun, sunovabitch."

The Romulan's smile fell and the sound of a gunshot reached all their ears. Sky collapsed to the ground and she panted heavily, watching the rapidly-disappearing figure fall down to the bottom of the pit-like hangar deck. She pulled Kirk onto the platform and he nodded gratefully to her, but then smiled slightly despite everything that had happened so far.

"That sounded like something I would say."

* * *

Kirk finished off the last of the Romulan guards with the weapon he'd picked up. He and Sky hurried over to the table where the poor Captain Pike was laying, strapped tightly and seemingly hardly conscious. They started undoing his bonds and he rolled his head towards Kirk. "What are you doing here?"

"Just following orders."

While Kirk was undoing the Captain's bonds, Sky saw a new couple of Romulans in her peripheral. In one second they were shot down and Sky lowered her weapon and looked at Pike, who had Kirk's adopted weapon in hand. "Good shot," she told him with a smile.

"I thought you were a biologist," he rasped bemusedly.

Sky shrugged. "I'm a shoot-first-ask-questions-later type of girl when I need to be, sir."

They released him from the thick leather straps and they lifted him from the table, balancing his weight between the two of them. Kirk whipped out his communicator and yelled into it. "_Enterprise_, now!"

The familiar tingling sensation took over and a blinks-worth of a moment later, she stood on the transporter pad. She looked over at Spock with a smile, but then quickly dropped it when she remembered what Nero had said.

_"Ambassador Spock's wife!"_

Kirk smiled satisfyingly. "Nice timing, Scotty!" he praised. Spock stepped of the pad and the other Officers followed, albeit slowly. Scotty laughed from the adrenaline rushing through his veins.

"I've never beamed four people from two targets onto one pad before!"

The doors to the transporter room opened and McCoy, Natasha, April, and a couple of other nurses sprinted inside. "Jim!" the doctor exclaimed.

"Bones," Jim greeted.

"I got him," he said, taking Pike into his arms and allowing the two other Officers to let go. The other nurses took over and Sky moved away from the pad. Natasha and April ran up to her and both nearly tackled her to the floor with a giant group hug.

Shortly after they both glared at her and said simultaneously, "Don't you _ever_ do that again!"

Sky laughed from the emotions that were rampaging inside her and just shook her head in defeat. "You'd just better be glad I'm alive." She pulled away from them and smiled apologetically before rushing off to the bridge, leaving the nurse and scientist to aid in getting Pike to the Med Bay.

* * *

Sky emerged on the Bridge, keeping step with the two men in front of her. As the entryway doors closed, Chekov turned and smiled at their arrival. "Keptin, ze enemy ship is losing power! Zeir shields are down, sir."

"Hail them now," Kirk ordered.

"Aye."

The three stood in a straight line, all sending their full attention to the flickering screen before them. Suddenly the Narada was being loomed over by a giant black hole, and Sky was startled by the strange, eerie beauty it somehow possessed. The ship was starting to be pulled apart from the inside.

The main viewing screen flashed again and Nero's face appeared, although the image flickered due to interference. "This is Captain James T. Kirk of the U.S.S. Enterprise," Kirk stated. "Your ship is compromised; too close to the singularity to survive without assistance, which we are willing to provide."

Spock's brow furrowed slightly before he turned and murmured to the Captain, "Captain, what are you doing?"

"Showing them compassion may be the only way to earn peace with Romulus. It's logic, Spock. I thought you'd like that," he replied, equally quietly.

Spock's lips twitched. "No, not really. Not this time."

"_I would rather…suffer the end of Romulus…a thousand times_," Nero's voice echoed from the speakers, his baritone making it seem uncannily ominous. "_I would rather…_die_ in _agony_….than accept _assistance_ from _you."

"You got it."

Kirk turned and walked around the front console. "Arm phasers. Fire everything we've got."

"Yes, sir." Sulu complied with his given order with a personal satisfaction that the man who'd taken countless lives would finally be destroyed, once and for all. Sky followed Spock back to their stations and she swallowed down the lump of emotion in her throat as he dragged his gaze away from hers and to his instruments.

What emotion that it was in particular, she had no clue.

The phaserfires filled everyone's ears and Sky watched as the Narada was slowly destroyed. The black hole- with the aid from the _Enterprise_'s weapon armada- gradually ripped the long, once-eerie tentacle-like metal structures inward. Explosions ensued and the black hole absorbed the giant futuristic starship entirely, leaving no trace of it behind.

Suddenly the main view-screen flashed red with a warning that blared 'Warning: Gravitational Pull'.

"Sulu, let's go home," Kirk said with a slight edge in his voice.

"Yes, sir!"

The _Enterprise_ turned in a one-eighty degree angle, but did not go forward. A spike of fear and panic shot through Sky and she clutched the edge of the control panel.

"Why aren't we at warp?" Kirk demanded.

"We are, sor," Chekov informed him.

Kirk clicked the communication panel on the arm of his chair. "Kirk to Engineering; get us out of here, Scotty."

The replying voice came from the speaker. "_You bet yer ass, Captain_!"

The _Enterprise_ was starting to be slowly drawn backward by the black hole, and Sky could feel its engines straining through the vibrations in the floor.

"_Captain, we're caught in the gravity well! It's got us_!" Scotty yelled over the noise.

"Go to maximum warp!" Push it!"

"_I'm givin' 'er all she's go', Captain_!"

Suddenly a loud cracking sound emanated and all eyes turned towards the roof of the bridge where a crevice was starting to form.

"All she's got isn't good enough!" Kirk yelled. "What else you got?"

Scotty sounded frantic as he suggested, "_Okay, if we eject the core and detonate, the blast could be enough to push us away. I cannae promise anythin', though_!"

The main viewing screen cracked dangerously and screams were filling the bridge from the lower ranking officers.

Kirk was officially panicking now. "Do it, do it, do it!"

Everyone halted as the horse-sized pods were ejected from the bowels of the starship. They were pulled effortlessly into the blackness looming behind them. Suddenly, a bright white-blue light popped and grew surprisingly fast.

The bridge crew was knocked back in their seats and Sky squeezed her eyes shut, praying it would work. A loud humming sound roared deafeningly. Everything was white for a few moments before it cleared. The Enterprise was sent flying forward and Sky opened her eyes cautiously. Her eyes locked with Spock's and he nodded slightly, indicating they were safe.

Sky slumped back in her seat with a breathy and adrenaline-induced chuckle.

* * *

The loading dock buzzed with life with men and women going about, supplies and shipment orders being loaded and unloaded on shuttle crafts in preparation for transport to Space Station I. Sky was looking around for one person who she hadn't seen since the Enterprise crew had all been shipped back down to Earth.

She was walking around the shuttles, piercing blue eyes scanning over faces and relaying thoughts through her mind. They'd gotten back to Earth a day after Nero was destroyed, and it was already early morning. The amount of people in loading dock was starting to dissipate, Sky noticed.

However a figure caught her eye as she turned the corner. A lone figure in a darker gray cloak, with his hands behind his back and not a single gray hair out of place was walking forward, but seemingly without a real destination. Sky picked up her pace slightly, walking up behind him. When she was within hearing range, she called out to him.

"Sir, do you need help?"

The figure's pace halted and he hesitated. It looked like he didn't want to turn around. "No, Lieutenant. I am not in need of any assistance," he replied.

She continued towards him until she stood about a yard away from him. "Are you sure?" she inquired with a furrowed brow. She tried to get a god look at his face, but his sturdy build kept her from doing so. Said sturdy build seemed eerily familiar. And his voice sounded familiar, too, once she thought about it. The ears were just a dead give-away.

"Spock?"

He finally turned, and Sky's eyes widened with startled surprise. This was certainly not the Spock she had departed from only an hour ago on the shuttle bay. His gray hair, as was said before, was perfectly straight and in the same bowl cut as was the half-Vulcan she knew. His bodily structure was uncannily exact to Spock's, and his face, despite the obvious milestone lines, was of the same shape and angle. But his eyes were what alarmed her.

Those same warm, chocolate-brown irises stared back at her, analytically scanning her over. He seemed almost…saddened by seeing her. As if he'd somehow known her.

"You are Sky Lorion."

He said it in such a manner that Sky knew couldn't possibly be Vulcan. But here he was; pale, yellow-tinted skin and pointed ears and slanted eyebrows and all. Her eyebrows furrowed and she tilted her head slightly to observe him better.

"And you are…but you couldn't possibly be him," she said this mostly to herself, but he still heard it anyway.

"I am, in fact, who you think I am."

She shook her head slightly and rubbed her forehead with the nubs of her fingers. "Must be a concussion or somethin'," she mumbled. She looked back up at him again and smiled apologetically. "Sorry, sir. I was…struck several times throughout the previous mission and I must be hallucinating."

The Vulcan's upper lip twitched into a not-quite smile. "I was informed of this by my younger counterpart."

Sky stared at him for what seemed like forever before she sighed. "Well, this explains why Jim managed to get back on the ship." And get his ass pulverized by your 'younger counterpart'. She restrained from voicing the last bit and kept it unsaid.

"So you are…Spock. Wow. Never thought you'd look so…old." She trailed off and a pretty shade of rosy-pink blush dusted her cheeks when she realized she'd said that out loud. "Sorry, my mouth runs two steps ahead of me sometimes."

Spock nodded slightly. "I am aware of that," he said with a familiarity behind his less-than-usual impassive tone. They stared at each other for another moment before Sky spoke again. "You talk like you know me," she stated, crossing her arms over her chest. She was wearing an Officer's uniform now, thanks to Natasha for badgering the poor young man behind the counter of the uniform's department on the _Enterprise_.

"I do…did know you. And I hope that my counterpart will know you as well."

Before Sky could comment on that statement he turned on his heal and walked off, leaving a furrow-browed Sky behind.

What could that possibly mean?


	12. Epilogue

**A/N: Here we are again: the end of this story. I shall immediately start on the sequel to this, and post the first chapter as soon as I can. ****Nothing's changed: please Review!**

**-Epilogue-**

"This assembly calls _Captain_ James Tiberius Kirk."

Sky chuckled at the familiar circumstances of which had taken place only one day prior. Natasha turned and looked at her with a bright-eyed smile, in which Sky returned. April rolled her eyes from the other side of Natasha and crossed her arms over her chest with an impatient huff.

Kirk was standing opposite of Admiral Barnett, who was at the base of the long staircase and continued the ceremony-required speech. "Your inspirational valor and supreme dedication to your comrades is in keeping with the highest traditions of service, and reflect utmost credit to yourself, your crew, and the Federation. It is my honor to award you with this commendation."

He received the small leather-plated box from another Admiral behind him who lifted the lid up, revealing a shiny, brand-new medal. Barnett took it in his fingers and placed it upon Kirk's chest with a slight smile. "By Starfleet Order 28455, you are hereby directed to report to Admiral Pike, _U.S.S. Enterprise_, for duty as his relief."

Pike was wheeled onto the podium by another Lieutenant; he was not able to walk as of yet, and Sky knew (from the various ramblings of Natasha) that he probably wouldn't ever be able to again, with the exception of a cane.

Kirk stood at attention in front of the newly-ranked Admiral, respectfully saying what was required of him. "I relieve you, sir."

Pike smiled slightly at him. "I _am_ relieved."

Kirk grinned slightly in return. "Thank you, sir."

"Congratulations, Captain. Your father would be proud." They shook hands and the auditorium erupted in applause. Kirk turned and viewed all of the Starfleet members present; Sky could tell he was happy.

She smiled as well.

* * *

Sky was standing on the balcony of Starfleet HQ, hair blowing softly in the breeze and bright eyes sparkling from the streetlights below. She had just been in the debriefing room, talking with Admiral Pike about how things were going with his disability. She'd heard he was a good man at heart, and whoever said Admirals were heartless was a drunken bastard. Pike was the nicest man she'd ever met, and somewhat reminded her of her grandfather Carl.

Speaking of which, Sky had received a call from her family and they had demanded to know if she was alright. The press had already started printing articles on the circumstances of the _Narada_ and her demise, as well as the 'valiant heroes' that had saved Earth. Sky had assured them that she was alive and that she was fine, although it was partially a lie.

She'd received several scratches and bruises (from Vulcan)- she flinched at the thought of it- not to mention the dark purple bruise on her jaw from Spock's little rage outing, or the two Romulans that had threatened to choke her to death. The list went on, but that was the main injuries that were to be worried about. Even then, she was healing accordingly thanks to Natasha treating her in their dorm (they hadn't gotten their own apartments as of yet).

Sky heard the glass door open behind her and she turned, expecting the newcomer to be Pike, but in fact it was not the Admiral.

Spock's brows where furrowed slightly in what little confusion he allowed himself to show as he observed her with his dark eyes. Those dark eyes which looked even darker due to the depletion of light as the Earth turned its back to the sun. Sky smiled gently at him in a silent hello. She hadn't seen him since they were brought down to Earth (and spoken to his 'older counterpart', in whom she could still hardly believe he was real).

"Hey," she greeted, smile widening slightly before turning back to the sight before them. He nodded slightly in return and took residence beside her, observing the view of San Francisco's tall and illuminating buildings. They were silent for a moment before he spoke.

"I was lead to believe you had a phobia of heights," he stated, looking her with an almost-raised eyebrow.

She shrugged and placed her hands on the railing, looking up at the stars which were amazingly visible even with the impending lights below. Orion's belt winked back at her. "Well, I did jump onto a platform ten feet below me with almost a hundred or two hundred feet below that, so, I guess it just kinda died off," she informed him with a slightly amused grin.

An image of the Romulan's face flashed in her mind and her grin fell with a furrowing of her brows. Spock's gaze was still set on her and now he was curious. "May I inquire as to what occurred?"

Sky heaved a sigh and her demeanor changed from contentedness to tenseness in an alarmingly rapid rate. "Well, besides the fact I was nearly killed twice and having to see what I saw and hear what I heard, I guess I'm fine," she supposed quietly.

Spock did not reply, only turned his gaze back to the city. "You still blame yourself for my mother's death," he deduced after a moment, his voice becoming small and almost mournful.

Sky heaved another heavy sigh. "Yeah; the guilt just won't go away. Chekov blames himself, too- for losing her beaming signal." She tried swallowing the lump in her throat but that didn't do anything to appease the growing knot in her stomach.

"I have informed you before; the fault lies in Nero alone, and he is…not alive anymore. He shall not harm anymore beings that he deems unworthy…" He trailed off, staring hard at the night before him, as if trying to keep his feelings bottled up inside him.

Sky swallowed shallowly before inching towards the half-Vulcan. He did not move, so she took this as a sign it was alright. Once she was close enough, she leaned against his side. He stiffened beneath his uniform but did not move. Sky let out a sigh and closed her eyes as she felt his higher-than-human body temperature flow to her. After a few moments he relaxed and she smiled slightly in contentedness.

After all, who's a better comforter than a fellow mourner?


	13. AN: SEQUEL!

**A/N: Hey, guys! I just posted the sequel; it's by the name of Hidden Pasts. Please go check it out!**


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